The building
A new wood-frame building completed in 2026 on the west side of Montvue Avenue in central Abbotsford, with eight residential suites over a ground-floor commercial unit. Level 1 also holds the residential lobby, an amenity room, and the boiler, storage, sprinkler, and electrical rooms. Levels 2 and 3 are suites. The building is Group C under the Fire Code with a flat membrane roof, Hardie and metal-panel cladding, and a single Schindler elevator serving all floors.
New buildings need a fire safety plan before occupancy, and this one was written from the drawings and a site visit while the finishing trades were still on site, so the owner had an accepted plan ready when the occupancy permit was issued.
What made this plan different
- A new panel with no history. The Mircom FlexNet single-stage panel in the residential lobby had never been through an alarm. The plan writes out the normal, alarm, and trouble modes in plain language so the first person to face a flashing panel knows what to press and what not to press.
- Two occupancies, one system. The commercial unit has its own exits on the east and west sides and its own tenant, but it shares the alarm, the sprinklers, and the fire department connection with the suites above. The plan draws the line between what the commercial tenant maintains and what the building owner maintains.
- Elevator recall. The elevator recalls on alarm, with the recall switch and the machine closet on Level 3 rather than at the lobby. Both are on the drawings so crews are not hunting for them.
- Four exits and two stairwells that do not go to the same place. The east stairwell ends in the Level 1 lobby; the west stairwell ends outside on the northwest corner. The plan gives each floor a primary route and tells residents which door they will actually come out of.
- A 4-inch Storz connection. The fire department connection beside the main entrance uses a Storz coupling rather than the older Siamese pattern, and the plan records that along with the hydrant at Gosling Way and Montvue Avenue, roof access from the west stairwell, and the gas shut-off on the west side.
What Abbotsford Fire Rescue Service asks for
Abbotsford requires the plan to be submitted and accepted before occupancy for new buildings, in the Fire Prevention Officers’ Association format with the fire department information section up front, the appointment forms, and drawings showing every exit, extinguisher, shut-off, and fire protection system. Fire drills are required at least annually and the records kept on site.
What the plan includes
- Fire department information with the access route, hydrant, fire department connection, key box status, roof access, and elevator details
- Colour site plan and floor plans for all three levels with exits, stairwells, extinguishers, the sprinkler room, the electrical room, and the gas and water shut-offs
- Fire Safety Director and Deputy appointments, instructions to residents and to the commercial tenant
- Inspection, testing, and maintenance schedules for the alarm, sprinklers, elevator recall, extinguishers, and emergency lighting
- Fire drill log and inspection reports, plus a fire watch procedure for any system outage
Bringing a new building to occupancy in the Fraser Valley? See our Abbotsford fire safety plan page or request a quote.
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