Resting atop a hill, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Randy Dixon and Deborah Haensli’s Modern-Shed is the perfect getaway from hectic city living.
Randy, an accomplished member of Seattle’s theatre world, and his wife, Deborah, who works in business, lead a fast-paced, active life in the Emerald City.
But at least once a month, and more in the summer, they enjoy escaping to their home in the San Juan Islands.
SEATTLE — When Kai Carroll and his wife, Emily Wang, were expecting their second child last year, they knew that they had to create more space in their cozy three-bedroom house in Ballard.
The couple loved their house, and they loved their neighborhood. But with a young son and a daughter on the way, they realized that each child would need their own room — so there would soon be no space for either set of grandparents when they came to visit the little ones.
A power cord that ran from the woman’s house in Kelowna, B.C., supplied electricity to the small metal building, for which she was charging rent of $200 per month.
It’s not clear how long the people and pets had been living in the shed. Bylaw officers warned the owner two weeks ago it was not suitable accommodation, but the advice was ignored, said city spokesman Stephen Fleming.
Fleming described the small building as “a standard type of metal garden shed that you’d get at your local hardware store. It certainly doesn’t look like a place for people to be living in.”
Designed as a place for visitors to rest their travel-weary bones this Guesthouse concept could easily be adapted as a Laneway House for the Vancouver marketplace.
Backyard Bedroom Kit: Our customer came to Westcoast Outbuildings with a problem. Their children were growing up right before their eyes. Brother & Sister once happy to share a single bedroom, it was now rapidly becoming a dysfunctional situation.
Although the concept of modern prefab houses and design has been around since the ’60s, the architectural movement didn’t take off until early 2000. As technological advances like SIP panels (structural insulating that is precut and can be locked together) were made and interest in residential architectural design blossomed, architects turned their attention to prefab houses. The goal was to create a home that could be transported to a building site, be easily erected and look like modern architecture — all within a reasonable budget.
… and modern prefab houses were born.
Modern-Shed Pool Side Cabana & Music Studio
Prefabricated houses have a long history in the US. An early version of a prefabricated house was sent from England in the 1600s, but real prefabrication did not take off until the arrival of “house kits.” House kits contained all of the house’s parts, so the owners built the homes themselves or hired people to construct them.
The Aladdin Company started selling the earliest Prefabricated houses from its catalog in 1906. One of the best-known early kit-home sellers was Sears, Roebuck and Co., which sold more than 100,000 homes from 1908 to 1940 .
The District of North Vancouver follows Zoning Bylaw No. 3210 for sheds. A shed under 10 square metres (108 square feet) doesn’t need a building permit, but it still has to meet the zoning rules for location, height and setbacks. Looking for the other municipality? See the City of North Vancouver Shed Regulations.
The District treats a shed as a minor accessory building for storage. Its shed page says sheds aren’t allowed in a front yard in most zones, and they can’t be used for parking or as living space. Zoning Bylaw 3210 sets the final numbers for each neighbourhood zone, so the figures below are the general starting point.
| Building permit | Not required under 10 m² (108 square feet). Required over 10 m². |
|---|---|
| Site plan | Required even when no permit is needed. |
| From a side street | 3 m (10 ft), from a street that isn’t the front |
| From a lane | 1.4 m (5 ft) |
| From a side property line | 1.2 m (4 ft) |
| From any other structure | 1.5 m (5 ft) |
| Max height, flat roof | 3.6 m (12 ft) |
| Max height, sloped roof | 4.5 m (15 ft), for a roof steeper than 3 in 12 |
A shed over 10 m² can be built beside a garage, but the shed itself can’t hold a vehicle. If the building is used for parking, as a studio, as a dwelling or as a hobby space, the District no longer calls it a shed, and it may not be allowed at all.
The District surrounds the City of North Vancouver and includes Lynn Valley, Deep Cove, Blueridge and Seymour. Check your property tax notice or ask the building department if you’re not sure.
For the province-wide picture, see Maximum Shed Size Without a Permit in BC. For finished examples, the North Vancouver Backyard Office shows a small building that doubles as a workspace, and the 8×12 Modern Utility Shed shows a typical shed-size build.
District of North Vancouver Building Department, 355 West Queens Road, 604-990-2480. Start at the District shed page. These rules are a general guide only, so always confirm with the building department before construction.
Not for a shed under 10 m² (108 square feet). Larger sheds need a building permit, and every shed must still follow zoning.
Generally 1.2 m (4 ft) from a side property line, 1.4 m (5 ft) from a lane and 3 m (10 ft) from a street that isn’t the front. Your zone can change these numbers.
Generally 3.6 m (12 ft) with a flat roof and 4.5 m (15 ft) with a roof steeper than 3 in 12.
That changes the building’s use, so it may no longer count as a shed. See the North Vancouver Backyard Office for an example, and check with the building department first.
BCBC 2024 Division A 1.1.1.1(2)(e) says the Code doesn’t apply to accessory buildings less than 10 m² in building area that don’t create a hazard, and “hazard” isn’t defined, so the local building official decides. The 10 m² figure on this page comes from the District’s own shed page, and the setbacks and heights are the District’s general figures, which each zone can change.
Browse more Backyard Outbuildings built across Metro Vancouver. Looking for the other municipality? See the City of North Vancouver Shed Regulations.