To give clients an alternate option to the custom route, we have developed and are now launching Lanescape’s Pre-Designed Suites; thirteen laneway suite designs in three distinct facade styles, designed to fit on almost any lot in Toronto. With extensive laneway suite design experience, we’ve leveraged our expertise to short-circuit the approvals process and provide you, our clients, with projects that are ready for permits off the shelf.
Since the establishment of the Laneway Suite By-Law in 2018, Lanescape has led the way, and in doing so, become prominent player in the space. To date, we’ve designed over 200 accessory dwelling units throughout Toronto and the surrounding area. Our process up until now has always produced completely custom-tailored buildings to meet the unique needs of our clients. However, over the years, we’ve met some clients that have inquired about the possibility of a more streamlined approach that would better suit their budgetary and scheduling constraints. When it comes to project scheduling leading up to construction, we have found the approvals process to be the greatest time sink.
To give clients an alternate option to the custom route, we have developed and are now launching Lanescape’s Pre-Designed Suites; thirteen laneway suite designs in three distinct facade styles, designed to fit on almost any lot in Toronto. We’ve developed these suites to be comfortable, flexible, efficient, and affordable products backed by our team of architects, developers, and construction experts. With extensive laneway suite design experience, we’ve leveraged our expertise to short-circuit the approvals process and provide you, our clients, with projects that are ready for permits off the shelf.
CUSTOM VS PRE-DESIGN: OPPORTUNITY AND EFFICIENCY
The differences between custom and pre-design streams can most easily be explained by the different opportunities and efficiencies afforded by each. Put simply, our existing design process was developed to take advantage of your unique circumstances. This process takes time by necessity—we get to know you, your needs, your goals, and how to best design your suite to fit your goals. On the other hand, our new pre-design stream focuses on efficiency. We’ve taken all the stress out of the design process for you so you can cut straight to personalization and building permit. Consider our new system like customizing a luxury car; developed and tuned for performance but customized to your personal taste.
THE CUSTOM OPTION: ADAPTABILITY IN PARTICULAR CIRCUMSTANCES
Custom options are ideal for specific use cases. For example, if you’re planning to move your parents into your suite, a fully accessible option with larger hallways and a stair lift may be useful for aging in place. The custom option is also beneficial if you want to use part or all of the suite for personal use with unique “must haves” included in the design. In all cases, unique circumstances will require creative thinking in order to preserve an efficient and high-quality space.
Laneway and Garden Suites appear similar but can be very different. If you’d like to build an accessory dwelling unit but are not on a laneway, you might qualify for a garden suite. Although they look similar, a very different set of bylaws will govern the way they’re designed. Combined with a custom use-case, building an as-of-right-garden suite can sometimes be more challenging as they often require navigation of their own unique by-laws.
Lanescape’s custom design route allows our team to examine your priorities and presents you with opportunities to refine and achieve your goals through an iterative and interactive design process. As mentioned above, this process will need to take time, and although we strive to be efficient and provide the highest possible value, responding to all these complex conditions can lead to higher soft costs.
Sometimes, site conditions necessitate a custom design for a laneway suite. An example of this would be the presence of large trees on your property requiring input from an arborist. Building around trees demands careful planning. Similarly, building off existing structures also requires special coordination. Situations like these can impose constraints that require a well thought out custom design. While we are well-versed in design, more complexity will always require proportionate attention in order to deliver the highest value for your investment.
THE PRE-DESIGN OPTION: SPEED AND CONVENIENCE
We’ve designed thirteen suites AND a system that responds to your needs. Some clients may not have any particular use cases or complex site conditions. They may also be put off by the longer timelines associated with a custom design process and its costs. In cases like these, we agree that the custom route wouldn’t be ideal. Why should our clients have to jump through more hoops than necessary? This is where our pre-design process started. We developed a system first—one that prioritized reducing these barriers for entry to as many homeowners as possible. We then designed each of our thirteen options with guidelines that ensured a high standard of quality was met in all cases. We wanted to make sure that speed and convenience were achieved through considerate design and not severe compromise.
An expedited design process reduces soft costs for our clients. We stand behind our deep portfolio and expertise in this typology when we say that our vision for pre-designed suites is to have shovels in the ground as soon as possible. Reducing the number of variables allows us to minimize time before permit approvals as much as possible. So, when you qualify for a pre-designed suite, you can be confident that we’ve considered and resolved everything necessary—all you have to do is personalize your pre-design and enjoy the money you’ve saved on design fees!
Minimizing variables also reduces risk. Lanescape Construction and Lanescape Architecture work together to provide cost estimates for each pre-designed suite. This is only possible because, as part of Lanescape’s free property review, we evaluate your property for any complications like large trees or significant grade changes. This greatly reduces the possibility of unforeseen circumstances and allows us to confidently recommend your property for a pre-designed suite.
There are situations where our pre-designed suites are the ideal option. But since the process involves designing around strict constraints, we can only provide these 13 fixed options at this time. We’re sad to say that not every property will qualify and not every option will be a good fit, but we’re happy that this option makes owning a laneway or garden suite accessible to many more people.
IN SUMMARY
THE CUSTOM OPTION – PROS
– Ideal for specific use cases that may require unique design.
– Endless opportunities for customization.
– Garden suite compatible due to angular plane requirements.
– Multiple design options provided during preliminary and schematic phases.
– Works best with unique property conditions like large trees on site, significant grade changes, or grandfathering suites into an existing structure.
THE CUSTOM OPTION – CONS
– Longer design and approvals process which can often take upwards of 5-7 months.
– Higher soft costs
THE PRE-DESIGN OPTION – PROS
– Expedited design and approvals process taking around 2 months with architectural, structural, and mechanical drawings pre-prepared for each phase of design.
– Customization is still built in to this process with 3 unique façade options to choose from during the schematic phase.
– Reduced soft costs
– Reduced risk
THE PRE-DESIGN OPTION – CONS
– Limited design configurations
CONCLUSION
As an architecture firm focused on this typology, we understand the decision-making process our clients face when undertaking projects like this. Instead of designing a product looking for a solution, we carefully designed a system to navigate the difficulties of budget, time, and space and have pre-designed laneway suites to address them. The depth of consideration and range of options was formulated with Toronto’s laneways in mind. Our hope as your architects and neighbours, is to help you unlock the potential of your property and contribute to the broader urban landscape of our city.
If you or someone you know is interested in building a laneway or garden suite, please follow this link to receive your complimentary report. Our team will respond with a complete review within a single business day.