A few months ago I attended a trade show to illustrate the modular designs which I have developed. I wanted to show how the designs could be flexible using similar modular components. Here is what I came up with:
What are some great places to visit in and around Nanaimo? I'm writing a few days ahead of Nanaimo Infusion and the start of the biggest summer Cruise ship schedule I have seen since living on Vancouver Island. On April 24th the official start to Nanaimo Infusion and the arrival of the cruise ship Noordam, will bring in excess of 500 and 1200 visitors to the city respectively.
I wanted to create a short list of places that I would suggest visitors try to get out to visit. I'll update the list with more information
Hiking / Nature:
Morell Sanctuary: A private nature and wildlife sanctuary open to the public.
Westwood Lake: Nice and easy walk around the lake
Cable Bay Trail & The Narrows (Cedar): Walk down to Cable bay and then into Joan park to the narrows. Watch the boats brave and the sea lions brave the currents
Englishman River Falls (Parksville): Beautifully awesome waterfall
Cathedral Grove: Experience some of the oldest trees on the island
Dining:
The Vault: Great for breakfast, lunches and general hanging out
Asteras: Greek food
Thai Cook: Really delicious Thai cuisine
Carlos O'Bryan's: Nice combo of pub fare, great beer on tap, and waterfront dining
Baby Salsa: Excellent mexican food, homemade chips and salsa
Entertainment / Bars:
The Queens: Live music typically from Thursday to Sunday
The Nanaimo Bar: Something happening nightly, and the only place to get a Nanaimo Bar Martini
The Nanaimo Casino: Nanaimo's own little casino
An organisation called the Active Home Owners Society of BC is an excellent resource for manufactured home owners in BC. Answers related to problems between home owners and manufactured home park owners can be addressed on their website FAQ or by sending them an email.
Joining the organisation as a member is FREE with an optional donation to help support the activities of the group. You can find the organisation website at BCMHO.ca.
I live in British Columbia, Canada, for about 5 years now. About 4 years ago I bought a fairly new manufactured home in Nanaimo. There are many communities, or Manufactured Home Parks (MHP) in the City of Nanaimo. Approximately 1,700 units of this type exist in the city. While not a large percentage of Nanaimo's housing stock, it is an affordable alternative for owning a home. Typically, a potential resident buys a unit on a parcel of land, and leases land from the owner of the land. Depending on the condition of the home a small unit (Approx 700 to 900 sq. ft.) can sell from 150,000 to 300,000 CAD. Condos in the area go for 300K and up, and Townhouses 450K and up. Houses are difficult to afford, especially for the first time buyer.
So what's wrong? Instead of promoting more of this type of housing, MHP owners are making things more difficult for this to be affordable. What would you think if a service went from 500 CAD per month to 800? Floored right.? This is what is happening when a new lease is signed between the land owner and a new home owner. The affordability of a Manufactured Home is directly affected by an increase in the fee to lease the land where the home is located.
Sometimes people just do not know any better, but there are methods to control these cost increases. The Rental Tenancy Branch (RTB) can help people in BC. Most provinces in Canada have organizations of their own.
I've been working on these affordable homes models for a few years now, and I finally decided to get some 3D Prints made. 3D printing is so much different from creating a 3D model for rendering. As I quickly learned. I'll make some adjustments for the 2nd go around.
I believe that it is possible to create a manufactured home in an assembly line style. It all starts with standardized parts. In this illustration I illustrate the idea using a simple structure and its floor and front wall assembly. If you can manufacture these parts separately and bring them together at the end it can lead to greater standardization. In reality these elements may not be put together as the illustration suggests, but I believe that the entire enclosure including studs, sheathing, and weatherproofing could at least be put together before this unit were to be exposed to weather elements.
I believe that our idea of how much space we require to live in has exploded over the years. People feel that a 2000ft2 home is not only something they require, but something that they deserve. In the meantime we hear people complaining that they cannot afford to enter the housing market. ie. young families, and we also hear about seniors having difficulty holding onto the homes they already have. That their homes are too big and expensive to maintain.
Enter the idea of small homes. Homes in the 450ft2 - 1000ft2 sizes. Designed to be modular and factory manufactured. To be quickly assembled on sites in order to avoid the problems of building in outdoor weather conditions.
One of my modular designs that I have been working on, is in this category. I've called it the 450, designed as 3 modular elements.
The Storage / WC Module
The Kitchen / Living Module
