What has to happen before the work starts?
The Fire Code requires a fire safety plan in every retirement home (O. Reg. 213/07, Division B, Article 2.8.1.1). Under Sentence 2.8.2.1.(5), before construction begins in the building the plan is revised to add temporary alternative measures for the occupants' fire safety during the work and temporary procedures to control the fire hazards of the work, and the revised plan is then carried out. The plan must also cover what happens while any fire protection system is shut down. The home's staff run the plan; the contractor's schedule has to fit it.
Which Building Code rules apply to a small renovation?
Part 11 of the Building Code lets a basic renovation keep an existing building's performance level, reusing similar materials, as long as it does not weaken the alarm and evacuation systems, the fire separations or the structure. For a retirement home there is an extra condition in Article 11.3.3.1: the work has to conform to the Fire Code. A permit is still needed for the work the City lists; see the commercial permit guide.
What does gutting a floor trigger?
Article 11.3.3.2 calls it an extensive renovation when existing walls, ceilings, floors or roofs are substantially removed and new ones installed. In a retirement home that work means the home has to be sprinklered, needs a voice communication system where the Code requires one for that building, and every door to a suite or to a sleeping room has to close by itself, except doors straight to the outside. These items are priced at the start, not discovered at inspection.
How do residents stay safe while floors are rebuilt?
The work area is closed off from occupied areas, exits stay clear, and noisy or dusty work is booked around the home's routines. Occupied renovations explains how a building keeps running during construction, and the Notice of Project guide covers the constructor's safety duties on larger jobs. Hot work such as welding or grinding follows its own Fire Code section, with an extinguisher in the work area.
What has Cruzz built in a retirement community?
Cruzz Construction was the general contractor for the third and fourth floors at St. Elizabeth Village, a Zest Communities retirement community in Hamilton. For a care setting with clinical rooms, see medical clinics, and for the contractor's role on the whole job, general contracting.
| Rule | Where | What it means on site |
|---|---|---|
| Fire safety plan revised before work | Fire Code 2.8.2.1.(5) | Temporary measures agreed with the home first |
| Basic renovation conforms to the Fire Code | Building Code 11.3.3.1.(2) | No change may weaken alarms, exits or separations |
| Gutted floor: sprinklers | Building Code 11.3.3.2.(6) | Sprinklers are part of the scope |
| Gutted floor: self-closing doors | Building Code 11.3.3.2.(6) | Closers on suite and sleeping room doors |
| Staff training recorded | Fire Code 2.8.2.1.(7) | The home keeps the records for two years |