Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

Plans have been approved for four more modular homes for the homeless in Cambridge, gifted by developer Hill.

The so-called pods will provide transitional housing for up to 18 months to the homeless and former rough sleepers, with support provided by homelessness charity Jimmys and Cambridge City Council.

The councils planning committee voted unanimously to grant planning permission on Wednesday (October 7) for four of the portable buildings on land off Dundee Close in East Chesterton.

The small and self-contained homes are four of 16 to have been gifted to the city by Hill . Under its Foundation 200 project, the Ickleton-based family-owned house-builder is donating 200 such homes nationwide to ease the homelessness problem - a 10million gift inspired by the personal experience of Hill CEO Andy Hill, who was made redundant in 1999 when he had a young family, and feared they would lose their home.

The homes, to be managed by the Cambridge charity Jimmys, are 3.8 metres wide, 7.9 metres deep and 3.1 metres high, according to a city council report. Each unit comes fully furnished and includes a living area, kitchen, utility space, bathroom and a bedroom.

Six similar homes from a different project are already in place and have tenants on land next to the Christ the Redeemer Church, off Newmarket Road in Barnwell.

A further planning application has been submitted to install more of the 16 homes gifted by Hill, for a site at Crowland Way in Kings Hedges. And another application is anticipated for land of Barnes Close near to the airport.

This latest application differs from the previously approved row of six homes on Newmarket Road in that the planning permission is permanent, whereas the Newmarket Road scheme only has permission for three years.

The applicant, Cambridge City Council, said the homes will provide specialist single-person accommodation for local homeless people.

The city will only award a place to those who meet the criteria for its housing first strategy, which includes the requirement of a local connection, and the individual must be currently in vulnerable accommodation and struggling in the cycle of homelessness by being a repeat visitor of homelessness services.

A council planning officer said nearby residents had raised concerns that the homes would increase substance abuse or antisocial behaviour in the area. These claims, they said, were found to be without evidence. The planning officer said the council has advised the tenancies will not be offered to those with complex needs and that any tenant who has had non-housing related difficulties will need to be well on their way to addressing these and have been stable for a considerable period. They also said support would be available from the city council and homelessness charity Jimmys, and that conditions would be placed on all tenancies.

The planning officer also said the homes do not meet the councils policy for minimum space standards and therefore should not be used for longer-term standard housing. The occupancy period will be limited to 18 months.

A resident of Elmfield Road, Cinzia Malangone, wrote to the committee to object to the application.

She argued there is a conflict of interest and that the council is allowing itself to breach its own policy on minimum space standards by 30 per cent of the expected minimum internal space.

The homes have an internal space of 24 metres squared, compared with the councils expected minimum of 37 metres squared, which is based on government guidance.

She also argued that the application does not have the support of local residents, as only objections have been received in response, and said the pods are out of character with the area. She also criticised a lack of details about how future occupants would be selected, arguing the council could therefore not guarantee the most in need will access and benefit.

Council officer Rory Lowings made the case for the application to the committee and said the positive impact on future tenants could be immeasurable, as they might otherwise be reliant on a hostel or shared accommodation.

Homelessness in Cambridge is a clear and evident problem, he said, adding the need for the modular homes has only increased as a result of the pandemic. He said 77 people who would otherwise be homeless are being temporarily housed in hotels in response to the virus.

He said: The pods are part of the process of getting people from potentially a street homeless situation or a hostel accommodation situation to accommodation that they are in independently.

He said the homes are built to last at least 60 years, but that the aim is to move each tenant into conventional accommodation after they have established a stable domestic situation and are in a position to make that transition.

The homes could be brought into use not long after the New Year, Mr Lowings said.

He said that if the tenant has a history of drug use, Jimmys may conduct regular and random drugs tests. A representative of the charity told the meeting that if such a test is failed then an assessment will be carried out to determine if the tenancy should continue.

Cllr Jennifer Page-Croft told the committee her son had spent about eight years living on the streets as a rough sleeper. She said he now had his life back together again, with a stable home and family. She said that when she discussed this project with her son he said it was amazing. She said the smaller size can be more manageable and beneficial for those transitioning from a life on the streets.

A number of councillors voiced strong support for the scheme. Cllr Carla McQueen praised it as such a good thing, and Cllr Dave Baigent described it as wonderful.

Cllr Kelley Green said: Homelessness affects us all whether we feel like it does or not, we cant really just shut the door on it and ignore it.

She added: Given that housing is so expensive and becoming more expensive relative to our incomes in Cambridge, I think it is time we seriously addressed how to deliver housing of this type in bigger quantities.

I would really like to see more, she said.

Cllr Gerri Bird described it as a fantastic development.

I do understand the concerns of the neighbours who are close by, but Im sure we can make sure that everything is fine for them too, she said.

She added: I think these are important because we need to give these people a step up into accommodation so they can get back into normal life.

In response to a question from Cllr Baigent, she said none of these pods are accessible for anybody with a disability.

A council officer said there is other accommodation for those with disabilities looking for accommodation.

Emma Fletcher, director of Hills Foundation 200 , said: Achieving planning for these four homes is a tremendous step forward in our programme and is our second site in Cambridge to receive planning permission.

We have donated these homes to Jimmys, who will be providing the vital ongoing support to homeless people making the move into a home of their own. Were delighted to be part of an active community of organisations who together are helping tackle homelessness in Cambridge.

Read more

Hills pods are Next Steps for Cambridges homeless

Hill CEO: The personal experience thats driven me to donate 200 homes for the homeless in 10million gift

Supporters celebrate modular homes opening for Cambridges homeless

Cambridge homes for homeless team composed of unsung heroes

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Four of Hills modular homes for the homeless approved in Cambridge - Cambridge Independent

In my July article, I commented on how Modular Construction was moving up the Housing Agenda. Today the Times has reported on Government plans for a major investment in factory-built homes. This was part of a key speech by Robert Jenrick at the Conservative Party conference and has been supported by Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, and Steve Barclay, chief secretary to the Treasury.

Robert Jenricks comments are significant to the future of housebuilding. We are already seeing some of the traditional housebuilders invest in modular construction. For example: Berkeley Homes has set up a modular construction arm. Countryside is investing circa 20m in a modular construction factory. Barratts intends to construct 20% of its homes off-site. The Government believes that this initiative would aim to deliver 75,000 modular homes a year by 2030, creating up to 50,000 jobs and reducing carbon emissions from new homes by 40 per cent.

Whilst there are many barriers to overcome with modular construction, with Government backing, the housebuilding industry will need to adapt, in particular if housebuilders wish to work with Homes England or London Councils who will all have the ability to force a housebuilder to provide a modular element in the tender process.

With sweeping planning reforms approaching (see a planning white paper summary here), it is possible that permissions for certain types of developments will only be granted if there is a modular element.

Many modular construction companies are already recruiting land buyers and project managers from traditional housebuilders. This is a positive sign as it shows that modular construction companies are moving away from engagement as a (albeit main or single) contractor but into a housebuilder model where particular care is given to the long-term strategic goals of regeneration.

It is also significant that this latest announcement from the Government is being reported in the Times. Modular construction is a fairly niche topic and typically only people with an interest in housebuilding take note of these changes. However, given this is being reported in some of the mainstream media it shows how important this topic is becoming. The Government has certainly signaled its intention to back modular construction and it will be very interesting to see how the housebuilding industry evolves.

I will certainly keeping a close eye on how this develops as this continues to look like a serious shake-up of the industry.

The government has confirmed plans for a revolution in housebuilding

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/building-new-homes-to-be-moved-in-house-6fxz98fxp

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Government fully supports Modular Construction - What does this mean for traditional housebuilding? - Lexology

The Rugby City Council heard a report on the success of an emergency water main repair project at its regular meeting Oct. 5 at City Hall.

Jim Olson of engineering firm AE2S distributed maps and photos of the area where the pipe was repaired.

The contractor did a good job, Olson told the council.

However, Olson warned water main and pipe problems could happen again in the future. Time will tell when everything settles down whether that line will blow again, he said. Youll see in some of those pictures, all that asbestos cement pipe is pretty ragged. So, we do expect someday something bad to happen again. Knock on wood, I hope not.

Olson added, I would like to come to council next with a contour (diagram) from the six miles from the wells to the plant and show that to council where all the air valves are in the system.

The air valves are a big deal, Olson noted. I would like to explain that at a later date. There are 17 air valves between the 12-inch (pipe) where it transitions to 14 inch (pipe), and then 10 inch (pipe). I was looking at the contour map today with 17 air valves; we dont know where some of them are. I know where they are on the map. Some of them may be buried; some of them may never have been operating properly. Thats a direct reflection on why bad things happen. Ill leave it at that. You guys have got a lot on your plate tonight. We can talk about that another day.

Olson also discussed problems he noticed along the line where collars connecting older pipe with newer PVC pipe could leak. He also noted valves and other parts of water main infrastructure may be located in farmers fields and may suffer damage when run over by farm machinery.

Everybody can just be a little smarter on how pipelines and air valves work because youre the ones spending the money on it, Olson said. You can dump money into it until the cows come home but youve got to have air valves and proper piping coming from those wells to here.

I think its worth a conversation when youre ready, he said, adding, From the wells to the plant, if you were to replace that whole line, it would be between seven and ten million dollars. So, food for thought.

Olson explained that workers put some safety gate valves in the system so (Water Plant Supervisor Greg Boucher) can control it if something happens. He can shut off those valves. If something happens to the west, he can shut that one down on the north side and go down to the plant and isolate it. If something happens in the other direction, he has that.

The gate valves out in the field have that valve box sticking up, Olson noted. When you talk about farmers accidentally running things over, those valve boxes get picked off a lot.

Olson said the boxes should have barriers to let the farmer know that its there, or else hell pick it off, and all he has to do is pick off the top. Thats not a man hole. Its just a valve box.

Mayor Sue Steinke reported an issue with easements from landowners near the pipeline repair. She thanked Olson for bringing a surveyor out to the area to find an alternate way of repairing the pipeline. Steinke said the surveyor found the location of the easement.

In other business, the council considered a second reading of City Ordinance 428, which appropriated monies to various city operating funds.

The council also approved first readings of Ordinances 429 and 430, which provided definitions of modular and manufactured homes, and zoned where such buildings could be located.

Ordinance 429 extends city zoning authority to any quarter-quarter section of unincorporated territory if a majority of the quarter-quarter section is located within one mile of the corporate limits of the City of Rugby.

The ordinance also states, The citys zoning authority will only permit manufactured homes to be situated in R-3 mobile home park districts or R-1 mobile home district. All other areas within the citys zoning will not be permitted.

The ordinance includes a grandfather clause that applies to existing manufactured home structures in other zoning districts. Existing manufactured homes in non-mobile home districts may be replaced only by structures correctly permitted in the zoning district of the property. Modular homes or off-site built homes will be permitted based on zoning district requirements.

Your mobile homes need to go in the mobile home park, and shipping containers need to go in the industrial area, Steinke said. Thats the bottom line.

The council also accepted a certificate of dedication of streets and easements to Gary Kirchofner and other owners of mobile home park property in the Berdahl First Subdivision within the city. Kirchofner appeared before the council to answer questions.

The council also heard reports from city committees.

Council member Joel Berg reported the recreation committee saw work begin Oct. 5 on a drain tile project near the recreation complex. Berg estimated the project would take about two to three weeks.

Dave Bednarz of the city public works committee updated the council on a city sidewalk project. So far, since the program started, we have replaced 49 sidewalks in the city of Rugby, he said. Weve done some sidewalks near businesses and replaced (sidewalks) near Ellery Park. This year, so far, we have seven new sidewalks and we still have around $11,000 to use if someones interested in a 50/50 sidewalk, he added, describing an arrangement where property owners pay half the cost of a sidewalk.

The public safety committee reported hearing citizen concerns about parking regulations for commercial vehicles. The committee recommended putting signage in residential areas stating commercial vehicle parking is prohibited in those neighborhoods.

The council also discussed concerns with property near Ellery Park that was heavily damaged by a fire last spring.

Joel Berg reported he had discussed repairs needed on the Rugby Armory with Olson of AE2S.

City Attorney William Hartl also reported slow progress made on the Rugbys Municode project, which will put city ordinances into an electronic database.

Laurie Odden of the Rugby Convention and Visitors Bureau also appeared before the council to report the CVB had named Ashley Berg as its new president and Jarett Lovcik as its vice president.

In other business, the council approved an agreement to sponsor community open skating on Sunday nights from 6-9 p.m. at Al Wentz Arena.

The council also approved a permit application request by Gary Laughridge to place an antique windmill on his property within the extraterritorial zone, a tax abatement request by two Rugby residents and a request for support of a project by the Good Samaritan Health Services Foundation to update an elevator in the Heart of America Medical Center.

The council approved raffle permits for Rugby First, the Rugby CVB and Little Flower Catholic Daughters.

The council also approved a proclamation naming Oct. 10 Arbor Day for the city of Rugby.

Additionally, the council voted to issue an invitation for bids to rent plots of city-owned agricultural land. Sealed bids to rent the land will be accepted at City Hall until 2 p.m. Oct. 30.

Steinke also thanked Liz Heisey for her work as executive director of the Rugby Job Development Authority.

The Rugby City Council will hold its next regular meeting Monday, Nov. 2, at 7:30 p.m. in City Hall.

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Council hears of water main repair success | News, Sports, Jobs - Pierce County Tribune

08 October 2020

Charles Russell Speechlys LLP

To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com.

In my July article, I commented on how Modular Construction wasmoving up the Housing Agenda. Today the Times has reported on Government plans for a majorinvestment in factory-built homes. This was part of a key speech byRobert Jenrick at the Conservative Party conference and has beensupported by Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, and Steve Barclay, chiefsecretary to the Treasury.

Robert Jenrick's comments are significant to the future ofhousebuilding. We are already seeing some of the traditionalhousebuilders invest in modular construction. For example: BerkeleyHomes has set up a modular construction arm. Countryside isinvesting circa 20m in a modular construction factory.Barratts intends to construct 20% of its homes off-site. TheGovernment believes that this initiative would aim to deliver75,000 modular homes a year by 2030, creating up to 50,000 jobs andreducing carbon emissions from new homes by 40 per cent.

Whilst there are many barriers to overcome with modularconstruction, with Government backing, the housebuilding industrywill need to adapt, in particular if housebuilders wish to workwith Homes England or London Councils who will all have the abilityto force a housebuilder to provide a modular element in the tenderprocess.

With sweeping planning reforms approaching (see a planning white paper summary here), it is possible thatpermissions for certain types of developments will only be grantedif there is a modular element.

Many modular construction companies are already recruiting landbuyers and project managers from traditional housebuilders. This isa positive sign as it shows that modular construction companies aremoving away from engagement as a (albeit main or single) contractorbut into a housebuilder model where particular care is given to thelong-term strategic goals of regeneration.

It is also significant that this latest announcement from theGovernment is being reported in the Times. Modular construction isa fairly niche topic and typically only people with an interest inhousebuilding take note of these changes. However, given this isbeing reported in some of the mainstream media it shows howimportant this topic is becoming. The Government has certainlysignaled its intention to back modular construction and it will bevery interesting to see how the housebuilding industry evolves.

I will certainly keeping a close eye on how this develops asthis continues to look like a serious shake-up of the industry.

The content of this article is intended to provide a generalguide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be soughtabout your specific circumstances.

POPULAR ARTICLES ON: Real Estate and Construction from UK

Charles Russell Speechlys LLP

The past six months have seen significant changes for almost all businesses in the UK as a result of Covid-19. Following the closure of most high street units and many offices between March-June, ...

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Government Fully Supports Modular Construction - What Does This Mean For Traditional Housebuilding? - Real Estate and Construction - UK - Mondaq News...

TROY, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Skyline Champion Corporation (NYSE:SKY) ("Skyline Champion"), will release its earnings results for the second quarter fiscal year 2021 after the market closes on Tuesday, October 27, 2020. Skyline Champion will hold a conference call to discuss the results the following morning, Wednesday, October 28, 2020 at 8:00 A.M. Eastern Time.

Interested investors and other parties can listen to a webcast of the live conference call by logging onto the Investor Relations section of Skyline Champions website at http://skylinechampion.com. The online replay will be available on the same website immediately following the call.

The conference call can also be accessed by dialing (877) 407-4018 (domestic) or (201) 689-8471 (international). A telephonic replay will be available approximately two hours after the call by dialing (844) 512-2921, or for international callers, (412) 317-6671. The passcode for the live call and the replay is 13711673. The replay will be available until 11:59 P.M. Eastern Time on November 11, 2020.

About Skyline Champion Corporation:

OUR COMPANY

Skyline Champion Corporation (NYSE: SKY) was formed in June of 2018 as the result of the combination of Skyline Corporation and the operating assets of Champion Enterprises Holdings, LLC. The combined company employs approximately 6,700 people and is the largest independent, publicly traded, factory-built housing company in North America. With almost 70 years of homebuilding experience and 38 manufacturing facilities throughout the United States and western Canada, Skyline Champion is well positioned with a leading portfolio of manufactured and modular homes, park-models and modular buildings for the single-family, multi-family, hospitality, senior and workforce housing sectors.

In addition to its core home building business, Skyline Champion operates a factory-direct retail business, Titan Factory Direct, with retail locations spanning the southern United States, and Star Fleet Trucking, providing transportation services to the manufactured housing and other industries from several dispatch locations across the United States.

Skyline Champion builds homes under some of the most well know brand names in the factory-built housing industry including Skyline Homes, Champion Home Builders, Genesis Homes, Athens Park Models, Dutch Housing, Excel Homes, Homes of Merit, New Era, Redman Homes, Shore Park, Silvercrest, Titan Homes in the U.S. and Moduline and SRI Homes in western Canada.

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Skyline Champion Corporation Announces Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2021 Earnings Release Date and Conference Call - Business Wire

MOUNT VERNON, N.Y., Oct 09, 2020 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) Aris Energy Solutions announces that it has been selected for a Department of Energy funding award for its proposal Modular Fuel Cells Providing Resiliency to Data Centers and Other Critical Power Users. Aris celebrates this $2.66 million 3-year award with its esteemed program partners the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), West Virginia University (WVU), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Gaia Energy Research Institute, and Velocity Data Centers.

Steve Almeida, Aris Director of Fuel Cells and CHP, commented: We are grateful for this opportunity with the DOE, our partners, FCHEA and SOLIDpower to bring a Resilient fuel cell-based energy solution to the markets. Our scalable solution will increase Energy Efficiency, enhance Electrification, minimize downtime ensuring Resiliency, while decarbonizing Data Center operations. In a present/post Covid World, critical power is where we need it most, in our homes and businesses. Hence, small capacity fuel cells will prove a preferred medium transitioning towards a hydrogen economy, as we will also demonstrate functionality via hydrogen/natural gas blend.

The core fuel cell technology, the modular/scalable BlueGEN micro fuel cell was developed by SOLIDpower, a European company with facilities in Italy and Germany. Aris is currently installing early units in the U.S. and will demonstrate a key feature that will be integrated into the fuel cell system: Resiliency. Near term targeted markets include small/distributed data centers and other critical power users, some of which are in the small commercial segment, and multi-family residential.

Through both the kW size scale-up and cost reductions that are incorporated into this DoE program plan, the markets will broaden to include Medium Size Commercial, Institutional, Municipal and larger scale Data Center/Critical Power users.

Separately, but closely aligned with the goals of the DoE program, Aris is installing BlueGEN units in real world applications.

Lou Lombardozzi, Aris Director of Engineering & Project Development said: Were pleased to announce grid interconnect approval allowing for BlueGEN installation in a single-family home. This achievement enhances commercial readiness; an objective of the DoE program.

Dan Connors, Ariss COO and Co-Founder, added: The market has made its two key needs very clear: Resiliency and De-Carbonization. Beyond the Resiliency goal on this program, we seek to advance the BlueGENs current ability to De-Carbonize buildings and facilities of all types. We believe the BlueGEN fuel cell can become a key part of a Resilient and De-Carbonized energy infrastructure.

We encourage you to Learn More About This Program and Aris Energy Solutions (PDF): https://ariswind.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/PR-Web-link-20201008-1.pdf

About ARIS:

Founded in 2013 and lead by executives with decades of experience in the electric utility, engineer, construction and fuel cell industries, Aris Energy Solutions is introducing the BlueGEN mCHP fuel cell solution to a broad range of US markets.

More information: https://ariswind.com/

News Source: Aris Energy Solutions

Related link: https://ariswind.com/

This press release was issued on behalf of the news source, who is solely responsible for its accuracy, by Send2Press Newswire. To view the original story, visit: https://www.send2press.com/wire/aris-energy-solutions-and-partners-win-dept-of-energy-award-to-advance-modular-fuel-cells-from-development-to-deployment/

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Aris Energy Solutions and Partners Win DoE Award to Advance Modular Fuel Cells from Development to Deployment - Massachusetts Newswire

(Kristen Frier)

Here is a handy guide on the key players in the upcoming provincial election: The NDP, Liberals, Green Party, and Conservative Party. This should fill you in on their stances regarding housing, public health, the economy, and other issues that matter to you.

Housing

In the last election, the BC NDP promised to build 114,000 affordable homes in B.C. over the next 10 years. Their new platform continues to stick by that promise, in addition to promising to fund 4,900 units of affordable rental housing for seniors, families, and low-to-middle-income earners. Along with building more than 2,000 modular homes, the fund will support 280 transitional housing units for women and children experiencing domestic violence. It will also provide housing for Indigenous people and help fund new student housing at universities throughout the province.

The BC Liberals are pledging a one-year suspension of new fees and taxes, delaying projects, incentivizing local governments to approve more rental units, and making public hearings more accessible to communities. They want to make broader use of the Certified Professionals Program, encourage pre-zoning with density benefits, and enable landlords to apply for financial support during COVID. Additionally, they want to extend property tax reductions and deadlines to housing developments and implement rebates to encourage rental housing investment.

The BC Green Party has yet to put out a current public statement on this issue.

The BC Conservatives have committed to reviewing the existing 95 per cent of Crown land in B.C. and allocating 1 per cent of that Crown land to the development of more affordable housing. They are also encouraging financial institutions in B.C. to finance the development of affordable housing and increase the threshold to qualify for Property Transfer Tax exemptions for first-time home buyers.

Public health

Because of COVID-19, public health is a huge issue in the upcoming election.

The BC NDP party recently promised a new hospital in Cloverdale and 10 new urgent and primary care centres by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, the BC Liberals have promised to bring back Medical Service Plan premiums and free flu shots for all British Columbians, should they be elected.

The BC Conservative plan includes supporting publicly funded healthcare systems as the primary facilitator of health care services in British Columbia. If elected, they will support the development of efficient and affordable mental health and addiction initiatives for British Columbians.

The provincial economy

COVID-19 has completely changed the economy as we know it, and everyones eyes will be on the provincial parties to see what they plan to do.

The BC NDP has promised to invest $20 billion into creating jobs and supporting the technology, forestry, mining, creative, and tourism industries.

The BC Liberals have promised a 60-to-90-day holiday on the Provincial Sales Tax, Hotel Tax, and Employer Health Tax. They also have said they want to apply short-term commercial rent relief, increase the tourism marketing budget, and develop a rural B.C.-specific economic strategy. The party has encouraged implementing a moratorium on red tape that would add costs for businesses.

The BC Green Party has yet to put out a platform on this issue.

The BC Conservatives want to introduce competitive provincial, personal, and corporate tax rates to encourage investment, growth and job creation in all regions of British Columbia. They want to cut red tape and regulatory burdens through a systematic review, simplification and reform of all Governmental regulations.

The environment

Climate change and its impacts on our environment have emerged as an important subject in politics, particularly in B.C.

The BC NDPs platform promises to invest $111 million into combatting and preventing wildfires, modernizing environmental regulations, and implementing a made-in-BC Wild Salmon Strategy.

The BC Liberals have not put out a public platform on this issue. In contrast, the BC Green Party has called for the current government to implement a moratorium on forestry in high-risk old-growth ecosystems across the province and take further action in protecting wild salmon.

If elected, the BC Conservatives will work on balancing economic development opportunities with environmental protection through water and park conservation and protecting hunters and fisheries rights.

Other issues

Apart from those mentioned above, each of the parties has committed to other issues affecting British Columbians. The BC NDP has pledged to co-develop legislation with B.C. First Nations based on the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.

The BC Liberals platform, for the most part, seems primarily focused on supporting safe reopenings of schools, tourism, and small businesses, as well as taking action on hate crimes and supporting seniors.

The BC Green Party has been actively speaking about banning conversion therapy and ending private contracting of long-term seniors care.

The BC Conservatives platform includes items on democratic reform, financial management, education, and public safety.

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EXPLAINER: Party Platforms for this Provincial Election - The Runner

Last month, the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government announced that the government is boosting its Land Release Fund (LRF) and the One Public Estate (OPE) programme with an additional 30m to help release surplus land for housing.

The housing minister, Chris Pincher, said the LRF will offer councils the opportunity to bid for a share of a 20m pot for remediation works and infrastructure to bring their surplus sites forward for housing targeting small sites with a focus on supporting SME builders while the OPE programme will provide 10m, supporting the earliest stages of development.

I welcome these efforts from the government to kickstart housebuilding. They form part of Boris Johnsons build, build, build campaign, which is also championing the most radical reforms to our planning system since the Second World War to make it easier to build better homes where people want to live.

However, if the government is serious about moving the dial on the housebuilding industrys productivity levels, ministers must be proactive in bringing land forward and designating parcels exclusively for factory-built homes.

For decades now, traditional housebuilders have proven time and time again that they do not have the capacity to deliver on housing targets currently set at over 300,000 new homes a year in the UK.

In 2019, the number of homes delivered by developers in the UK reached over 170,000 for the first time in 11 years. While this is certainly an achievement worth applauding, it doesnt take a mathematician to work out that this is still woefully below official targets. And given the current crisis, output is likely to be far below this figure for the foreseeable as firms are forced to adhere to social distancing guidelines impacting adversely on onsite productivity.

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to delivering more homes, but innovative methods of delivery can certainly bring additionality to the market and help speed up delivery.

Homes England recently revealed in its end of year report that it had acquired 19 sites across the country with capacity to build 5,000 new homes. Its going to be crucial that some of this land is earmarked for modular housing developments.

Housing associations also have a key role to play in using their own funds and their own land to increase the uptake of MMC and housing output, and should be encouraged to collaborate closely with Homes England and other stakeholders.

Housing associations are already becoming more active in the land market as this provides ownership over the construction process and allows them to retain control of programmes. The majority of this activity is for small sites between 50 and 100 units, according to Savills, with bidding activity rising by 150% in the past two years.

Steps in the right direction are being made, however. Housing secretary Robert Jenrick, at this years Chartered Institute of Housing event, said he was making MMC central to the governments new 12bn affordable homes programme in order to deliver better and more sustainable homes.

These certainly werent empty promises. The following morning, Homes England stated that housing associations looking to sign lucrative partnership deals as part of the Affordable Housing Programme will have to commit to using Modern Methods of Construction to build out at least 25% of their pipeline.

The significance of this policy cannot be underestimated for a number of reasons.

Firstly, there is an urgent need to speed up the delivery of affordable housing. There are over 1m families waiting to be housed in the UK but, according to the latest government data, only 57,485 affordable homes were delivered in England in 2018-19. By building homes using modern methods, the government can speed up construction programmes as modular housing can be delivered in half the time of traditional methods.

Secondly, this policy will help tackle fuel poverty. High energy prices have placed a worrying proportion of the British population in fuel poverty, with government figures estimating that there were 2.5m fuel-poor households in England in 2017 roughly 11% of the total number of households.

This problem is likely to be worsened with Covid-19 beginning to take a grip on personal finances. As the government begins to pare back the furlough scheme, the younger generation, already facing slowing wage growth, are likely to be affected the most as the hospitality and retail industries continue to announce swathes of job losses.

By manufacturing more homes offsite, the government can begin addressing this problem. This is because by building homes in a factory-controlled setting, high levels of airtightness can be achieved, helping to keep homes cooler in the summer and allowing them to be heated more cheaply in the winter. At ilke Homes, were able to deliver homes that cost as little as 1-a-day to run saving young professionals and families hundreds of pounds on bills each year.

The need for change in UK housebuilding has never been greater. Covid-19 has laid bare the huge inequalities that exist in British society, and the only way to begin addressing the housing crisis is to diversify the supply of new homes. The government must take a top-down approach to this and introduce ambitious policies that encourage the industry to welcome innovation with open arms.

Dave Sheridan

Executive chairman

ilke Homes

+44 (0)1904 924 100

http://www.ilkehomes.co.uk

Twitter: @ilkehomes

LinkedIn: ilke Homes

YouTube: ilke Homes

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Ambition, ambition, ambition: The key to solving the UK's housing crisis - Planning, BIM & Construction Today

The Ontario government has significantly ramped up its use of special orders that eliminate the requirement to give public notice before changing the way land can be developed.

Ministers zoning orders, or MZOs, were once considered a tool only for extraordinary cases. They allow the minister of municipal affairs currently Steve Clark to set aside local planning processes and public consultations, and designate land use without the possibility of appeals.

The Star reported in June that Doug Fords Progressive Conservative government had used the tool eight times since taking office in 2018; the previous government had filed just two MZOs throughout 2016 and 2017. The Ford governments count has more than tripled since, hitting 26 MZOs by early October.

The tally includes a flurry of orders related to long-term-care developments this summer two in Toronto, and many others across the GTA. Several of the orders were connected to pandemic-era efforts to speed up development of nursing homes that meet modern standards.

Not all the MZOs are solely for nursing home beds: some permit uses from food and retail to offices and retirement homes. A piece of provincially owned land in Torontos Thistletown will also permit a wide range of residential development. The province declined to detail its plans for that site, saying no final decisions have been made since it scrapped a plan developed by the former Liberal government.

Other MZOs issued in Toronto this summer expedited construction on a pair of modular housing projects for the homeless.

While critics acknowledge that MZOs, in some cases, can be appropriate and serve the public interest, several argue that the Ford governments escalated use since taking office in 2018 is unprecedented, reduces government transparency and undermines local planning processes.

What it does is send a signal to the development world that, hey, this is possible. We can just sidestep the development process and go straight to the Minister, said Tim Gray, executive director of Environmental Defence.

The Ontario Federation of Agriculture wrote to Clark in August and expressed concern with the uptick of MZOs in municipalities with robust planning systems, arguing that doing so short-circuited planning principles and policies, while depriving affected people of consultations.

The Greenbelt Council, in a report sent to Clark in July, recommended MZOs be used sparingly. Where they were deemed necessary, it urged greater transparency through a detailed and specific explanation of the proposals urgency, size and nature.

But the province said its orders this summer kickstarted critical projects, and that any MZOs filed for non-provincially owned land were requested by municipalities.

Torontos chief planner, Gregg Lintern, said the city still held consultations for the modular sites granted MZOs, though he acknowledged that not everyone may be satisfied by its efforts.

For the modular sites, MZOs meant not having to turn to Torontos committee of adjustment, which has been in a backlog, he said.

COVID-19 demanded an accelerated response to issues like homelessness, which the new supportive housing units could address, said Lintern.

Victor Doyle, a retired bureaucrat who spent decades in Ontarios housing ministry, acknowledged that efforts to increase long-term-care beds or supportive housing were hard to take issue with.

If (the pandemic) is the rationale for expediting them, then thats all that should be allowed, Doyle said.

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He was skeptical of zoning orders allowing for other uses as well.

My biggest concern is these things are promoted as cutting red tape, he added. But the red tape theyre cutting is basically the cutting out of any citizen participation.

With files from Noor Javed

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Ontario government ramps up use of special orders to rezone land without appeals - Toronto Star

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