thumb|right|300px|Vancouver specials were typically constructed en masse due to versatile design

The Vancouver special is an architectural style of residential houses developed in Metro Vancouver, Canada. The architectural style was generally utilized from the 1960s to 1980s due to an ability to maximize floor space with relatively cheap construction costs.

Background

Vancouver specials were mass-produced between 1965 and 1985. However, there are examples of homes built in the late 1940s which share the characteristics of a Vancouver special. However, the mass production of the Vancouver special is primarily attributed to the South Asian community after a wave of immigration in the 1960s and 1970s prompted many new immigrants to settle in the area and preside over the last large scale residential development in southeast Vancouver.

In response to public reaction to the proliferation of this design, the City of Vancouver made changes to its building code in 1985 that limited the proportion of a lot that could be used for livable floor space. This effectively prevented additional Vancouver specials from being built.

A home design store on Main Street bears the name "Vancouver Special" and Arsenal Pulp Press of Vancouver published Vancouver Special, a book of essays about the city by Charles Demers, in November 2009, showing that the reputation of the homes may have now gained a certain vintage glamour.

Local brewery, R&B Brewing, offers a West Coast IPA named after the Vancouver special.

See also

  • Dingbat (building)
  • McMansion
  • Vancouverism

References

  • Home Improvements, by David Carrigg, Vancouver Courier (5 November 2004)
  • Vancouver Special Redux, by Christopher MacDonald, Canadian Architect (July 2004)
  • Vancouverspecial.com, a gallery and location-map of Vancouver Special houses
  • Flickr set of examples