---
title: "Vancouver receives first rezoning application under its new single-staircase building rules"
description: "A developer has applied to replace a house in Arbutus Ridge with a 6-storey rental building, the first application under a framework Vancouver City Council approved in December 2025."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/news/single-staircase-rental-building-arbutus-ridge-october-22"
last_updated: "2026-10-22T21:55:50.927Z"
---

A developer has submitted a rezoning application at 2150 West 16th Avenue in Vancouver's Arbutus Ridge neighbourhood, proposing to replace a single-family house with a 6-storey, 24-unit rental building. Daily Hive Urbanized reported on October 22 that the City of Vancouver confirmed the application is the first filed under Vancouver's single-egress staircase residential building design framework.

Vancouver City Council approved that framework in December 2025. It lets small residential buildings up to six storeys use one exit staircase rather than two, which reduces construction costs and allows larger apartments on individual lots without buying neighbouring properties.

## The proposal

Developer PCube and design firm B Squared Architecture are proposing a 60-foot, six-storey wood-frame building with 24 secured purpose-built market rental homes. Daily Hive Urbanized reports no below-market rental housing is proposed. The design places a single outdoor staircase on the east side of the building, with open-air walkways connecting units to the staircase and a central elevator.

The mid-block lot is located just west of the corner of Arbutus Street and West 16th Avenue, near the Loblaws City Market Arbutus grocery store. Daily Hive Urbanized reports the site is within the Transit Oriented Area for the future Arbutus SkyTrain station, about a 12-minute walk north at West Broadway and Arbutus Street.

## Why this rule exists

Vancouver's standard rules require buildings three storeys and higher to have at least two separate exit staircases. Those staircases and their connecting hallways take up floor area. The single-staircase framework, which builds on a BC Building Code change from 2024, replaces the second staircase with enhanced fire safety requirements. Under the framework, buildings can reach up to six storeys, with up to six suites per floor on levels one to three and up to four suites per floor on levels four to six.

## What happens next

A rezoning application in Vancouver goes through a public process that ends in a City Council vote. Residents can submit written comments or speak at the public hearing before Council decides. The City of Vancouver posts rezoning applications and hearing dates at [shapeyourcity.ca](https://shapeyourcity.ca/development-applications).

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