About this design:

In 2019 I teamed up with Carmen DiPasquale to create the Pica for Nelson’s Laneway House Design Competition. We were pretty excited when the Pica was awarded 3rd place and designated the “Affordable Choice” as well as being voted the “People’s Choice”!

The base design provides 404 square-feet of living space on a pier foundation, with options for a 160 square-feet addition, plus a basement. Note that these options are offered as separate plans, and are not included in the 1 Bed / Studio version.

Pre-reviewed plans for all three versions of the Pica are available to Nelson residents through the City of Nelson, and those outside the city can purchase them here.

Features:

• Covered deck

• Exterior storage (optional, heated or unheated)

• Space for apartment sized washer/dryer or closet

Specifications:

• Pier foundation

• 8’ Ceilings

• High R-value, rainscreen wall assembly (R24.3 effective)
  2x6 w/ R22 cavity insulation & 2” rigid mineral wool exterior insulation

• Low-slope (2:12) engineered truss roof

     

IMPORTANT

All sales are final. Before ordering plans, you are strongly advised to consult with a local home builder or engineer, as well as your local building department.

All versions of The Pica were designed to comply with the 2018 BC Building Code, relevant local bylaws and structural design loads (where applicable) in Nelson, B.C. at the time it was produced.  In other locations, modifications may be necessary to meet applicable building codes, bylaws and other requirements.

For small homes, there can also be minimum size, maximum height and other requirements, particularly in urban environments (e.g. laneway or accessory homes).   

It is the Licensee’s responsibility to consult with local building professionals as required to determine that these documents meet all relevant local codes, ordinances/bylaws and regulations, etc., and are appropriate to specific site conditions. Compliance with such requirements shall take precedence over these documents.

All Plans are provided in PDF format and typically include:

• Cover sheet with sheet list and one or more 3D views of the design

• Exterior elevations of all sides showing exterior finishes, floor and overall building heights, estimated finished grades and footing depths.

• Foundation plan 

• Floor plans for each level 

• Details and/or sections    

• Window, door, and room schedules are also included on one of the pages, depending on where they fit.

Plans do not include:

• Material lists

• Plumbing, heating, or electrical drawings due to the wide variety of local codes, climatic conditions and individual preferences. These details tend to be pretty straight forward in a small home, and in most cases can be easily worked out directly with your contractor and local trade and building professionals.

• A Site plan 

• A professional stamp. Should this be required, you’ll have to take them to a local licensed architect or engineer to review and stamp the house plans at an additional cost. 

License

A single-use license is included with the purchase of any house plan set, including preliminary sets. With a single-use license, you can build the plan one time, or change it and build it one time. You can print out as many copies as you need to in order to build the home one time. 

You cannot resell the plans or revised versions of the plans. Rod Taylor Design reserves the copyright on all designs.