Dear Editor,

The following is an open letter to the Clerk of the Houses of Parliament:

I write to inquire about the status of the national building code and its passage into law. The code contains information that is relevant to the carrying out of our jobs as architects for planning facilities that are affected by national standards, such as space allocation, emergency egress, operational configurations, etc.

I recently heard that a home for the elderly in the Richmond Park area, with which my church is affiliated, has been inspected by the fire department and deficiencies identified which may result in it being closed. Additionally, I understand that “other government entities” have been making efforts to ensure that the operational, health and space requirements in such homes are in keeping with “some” national standard. To my recollection, regulations for homes for the elderly fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Health and the ministry responsible for the building code.

Can you say when the final approval and adoption of the building code will be done so that we can advise our members/clients about the necessary requirements for their facilities?

If there are objections to the current code that are preventing it from being fully passed, can a firm timetable for the adoption be agreed and the Parliament advised that the passage of the building code is needed to carry out our planning exercises?

The continuing delay is severely affecting the application of necessary guidelines and regulations needed to ensure that all designs conform to health, safety and welfare requirements to protect the people who use and operate these buildings.

Hugh M Dunbar

Architect

hmdenergy@gmail.com