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Whistler Home Builders Association gets serious

Builders making plans for the future Tough times are coming for the construction industry in Whistler.

Builders making plans for the future

Tough times are coming for the construction industry in Whistler.

Whistler is reaching buildout, several builders have potentially lost projects because the Nita Lake proposal was halted, and home building is slowing down as the real estate market tries to balance supply with demand.

Add to that a perceived lack of respect for the local building talent in the corridor, which has led in some cases to builders being overlooked for local projects, and you’ve got a recipe for trouble.

That’s why the Sea to Sky chapter of the Canadian Home Builders Association believes it’s critical to mobilize now and be heard in the community.

"We have a lot to say about these issues and we want our voice heard," said Tim Regan, president of the local chapter of the CHBA.

"We want this chronic invalidation, the straw in our teeth stereotyping, to end because it is invalid and derogatory and it is counterproductive.

"And we will make our voice heard politically to achieve our goals."

Indeed several members of the CHBA, including Regan, took part in this week’s council meeting to make their views heard on the library project.

"We need to look at the economics of these decisions and where the local builders could help is that we have expertise in these areas so we should be involved in the process," said Regan.

"We could bring benefit to the process."

Local builders were also not approached recently when Intrawest decided to build up to 12 multi-million dollar homes in Kadenwood.

Beyond all that, said Regan, is the fact that the trades are basically the middle class of Whistler and if steps aren’t taken to try and make sure they have a livelihood here in the resort that population will disappear.

"We are one of the largest contributing incomes to the community," said Regan.

"We are one of the largest contributing employers in the community, so we are a big economic engine. Right now we have had a soft winter and we are likely to have a soft summer and this community has not seen that construction money for some time.

"It’s going to notice because I can tell you it will be the luxury items, like season’s passes, restaurant meals and new skis that go first."

He points to the lost Nita Lake Lodge project as an example of the trickle down effect in the community. If the $80 million project was done locally that would have returned nine fold into the community, he said.

"So by losing that project we have taken away $560 million from the community," said Regan.

He said there is no doubt that the industry, like many others, goes in cycles. And it’s likely that the 2010 Winter Olympic Games will play a role in keeping the industry strong.

But, said Regan, owner of Vision Pacific, unless the industry understands how the cycle works when hard times come around again the same mistakes will be repeated.

One of the most serious issues facing the industry at the moment is the potential loss of the Whistler "DNA pool" of craftsmen.

"The massive fires in the Interior last summer have led to a building boom, the Vancouver Island economy is very buoyant, Vancouver is going through a building boom so we are at risk of our trades scattering due to our slow down and these opportunities," said Regan.

"The effect is that when we need those trades back we may not be able to get them back. So whatever we can do locally to protect the income stream and the intellectual integrity of that construction industry the better it is for us as a community.

"One of the amazing things we have been able to do is gather talent from all over the country, so Whistler has some of the best trades and best craftsman anywhere in Canada, and arguably in North America.

"We have an expertise within the local economy in the construction industry so much so that our membership is asked to work globally and the irony is that I think we are more globally respected that we are locally."

Part of the issue of respect is the way in which the trades have evolved over time. In the 1970s, said Regan, construction workers were earning a middle class income. But wages have not kept up with the cost of living and today the trades are not seen as a good way to make a living.

The CHBA is trying to tackle this issue by promoting the organization as a professional body people can approach to get advice and recommendations from.

It is also heavily involved in training programs to bring new workers in the industry and has even set up a scholarship in Whistler for a high school student to encourage them to join the trades. Part of this training is focusing on the youth of the local First Nations groups, who Regan sees as a vital source of new trades people and managers.

The organization is working to raise its profile in the corridor and is already planning a number of community initiatives to help with this.

One will be the setting up of a Re-Use-It area for building supplies so that the public can come and purchase kitchens, or doors or all manner of items removed from homes which are being upgraded. The proceeds would then go towards scholarship funds for students interested in the trades in the corridor.

The CHBA is also working with the Resort Municipality of Whistler to try and help keep the building market strong in an effort to stave off the expected slow down.

Two crucial areas under discussion are the bringing on-line of suites in Emerald so that reputable builders can work on them and bring them up to code, and how to recognize non-conforming space so that renovations in many homes can be legitimized.

Originally in Emerald Estates, because of sewer capacity, suites were not allowed. But many homeowners put them in after the final building inspection was given. The trouble with this, said Regan, is that much of the work is below industry standard and does not meet building code requirements.

The concern is that a fire or accident will happen, lives will be lost and the finger pointing will fall firmly on the building industry.

"Above all, the move to legitimize the suites in Emerald in about safety," said Regan.

But, he added, it would mean that renovations will be above aboard and likely there will be more of them.

As for the non-conforming space, recognizing it will mean that real estate prices will be more accurately reflected in the price per square foot ratios of homes.

And it’s hoped, said Regan, that Whistler will soon stop counting basements – areas which only have one side not covered by earth – into the square footage of homes.

He believes the real estate market in Whistler is strong despite the perception that it has stalled.

"There has been steady increases in sales and yet the perception is that the market here is doing badly," said Regan.

"But the reason for that is based on the absorption rate. The supply and demand is not linked at the hip in this equation. So what you have is that our supply has gone up and your demand has gone up but the supply has outpaced the demand and so this has given a false message of the health of the market."

Regan believes there is a strong future for the building industry in the corridor and he believes the industry needs a strong professional voice.

Long gone are the days when the only time contractors and builders spoke to each other was at the annual Christmas party hosted by Mountain Building Centres.

"As Whistler became a community the builders of Whistler became a community and we are much more united now than we have ever been," he said.

"It probably took us too long to get here but we are here now.

"The two things that have to happen is that the members of the CHBA have to be competitive and they have to be competent.

"They should never be given work that they are not qualified to do. But if those two criteria are met then why would you give the work to anyone else?"