VanPlex Plexperts · BC Multiplex Allies
SFU City Program
Featured on VanPlex Plexperts — the curated directory of organizations advancing missing-middle housing in BC.
Teach how cities work and give residents the tools to shape what gets built. The program runs professional-development courses and public lectures on urban issues, from transportation planning to real estate.
About SFU City Program
The City Program is a unit inside SFU Continuing Studies. It started in 1993 and has had three directors: Judy Oberlander, Gordon Price (director from 2005), and Andy Yan, who took over in 2016.
Andy Yan, the current director, is a registered professional planner (FCIP, RPP, GISP) known in Vancouver for research on housing and demographics.
In 1996 the program received a City of Vancouver Heritage Award for community work with the Strathcona Residents Association, restoring deteriorated front porches in one of Vancouver's oldest, lowest-income neighbourhoods.
Courses are open to people new to design, planning, and development as well as to seasoned professionals. Instructors are working practitioners — architects, planners, and developers.
Programs
What SFU City Program runs.
Planning for Non-Planners (CITY101)
Intro course covering how the planning system works. Aimed at people who deal with planning but were not trained in it. Listed at $350.
Learn moreHousing Policy Fundamentals (CITY102)
Course on how housing policy is set and what tools governments use. Listed at $350. Relevant to anyone tracking missing-middle and multiplex rules.
Learn moreReal Estate Development from the Inside Out (CITY755)
Course walking through how a development project comes together, from land to finished building. Listed at $700.
Learn moreUrban Design Meets Real Estate Development (CITY760)
Course connecting design decisions to development economics. Listed at $700.
Learn moreFinancing Urban Growth (CITY242)
Course on how growth and infrastructure get paid for. Listed at $430.
Learn moreDesigning and Drafting Design Guidelines (CITY252)
Course on writing and applying design guidelines. Listed at $360.
Learn moreHow to get involved
Concrete ways to support SFU City Program.
- →Take an evening or online course such as Housing Policy Fundamentals or Real Estate Development from the Inside Out. Most run $350–$700.
- →Attend a public lecture on a current urban issue. The program runs public events through the year, funded by its endowment.
- →Start with Planning for Non-Planners (CITY101) if you are a homeowner or builder new to the planning system.
- →Email [email protected] or call 778-782-8000 to ask about upcoming course dates.
Other allies
Abundant Housing Vancouver
Volunteer-run YIMBY group, formed in 2016, that writes letters, runs missing-middle tours, and shows up at City Hall to back more housing across Metro Vancouver.
Architectural Institute of British Columbia
The regulator of the architecture profession in BC. Public register, Certified Professional Program, and discipline authority.
Homebuilders Association Vancouver (HAVAN)
Industry association for Metro Vancouver residential builders, renovators, and designers. Runs the HAVAN Awards for Housing Excellence.
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