A generation ago, B.C. overturned the ban on Sunday shopping. Today, we’d consider it absurd to keep shops artificially closed on Sundays. But many local construction noise bylaws still treat Sundays – and a patchwork of “holidays” that aren’t actually statutory – as if it’s still 1985.
In the middle of a construction affordability crisis, when every level of government is pushing for more homes and the infrastructure to support them, restrictive and inconsistent noise bylaws across B.C. are slowing projects, raising costs, and pulling pay out of working tradespeople’s pockets – without meaningfully improving anyone’s quality of life.
ICBA, Canada’s largest construction association, represents more than 4,500 construction employers, and hundreds of thousands of tradespeople. We respectfully ask municipalities to review their noise bylaws and consider five practical updates.
Five Principles for a Modern Noise Bylaw
Adopt the B.C. Government’s statutory holiday list by reference. Defining holidays as “statutory holidays as declared by the Province of British Columbia” keeps your bylaw automatically current as the Province updates its schedule, eliminates inconsistencies between neighbouring municipalities, and ensures modern provincial holidays are properly reflected.
Allow Sunday and statutory holiday construction with a later start time. A 9 a.m. or 10 a.m. start gives residents a quiet morning while keeping projects moving. Abbotsford, Squamish, and Whistler already use a version of this approach for both Sundays and stat holidays – and none have collapsed under the weight of Sunday productivity.
Tie time-of-day restrictions to a noise threshold, not just the clock. Where measurable noise at the nearest residential property line is below 70 dBA – quieter than a normal dishwasher – there is no reason to apply time restrictions. This sensibly carves out remote sites, indoor finishing work, and projects far from any residential neighbour.
Keep the homeowner ‘Do-It-Yourself’ exception. Residents working on their own property should continue to be allowed within reasonable hours. This is already standard in most bylaws and shouldn’t change.
Maintain standard exemptions for emergencies and continuous works. Concrete pours, emergency repairs, and other works that can’t reasonably stop should remain permitted. Most bylaws already cover this; keep it intact.
Who’s Already Getting It Right
These three municipalities have excellent construction noise bylaws worth reviewing:
Each lost day on a construction site multiplies into general conditions costs, financing carry, and lost wages – every one of which ends up in the price of housing.
And the cost doesn't stop with private builders. Municipalities are among B.C.'s biggest construction buyers. From pothole repairs and sidewalk fixes to playground upgrades, fire halls, and recreation centres – every public project in your community is built under the bylaw you set. Overly restrictive hours mean your own capital projects run slower and cost more – charged back to your own taxpayers.
We're not asking for fewer rules. We're asking for clearer, more consistent ones that match how British Columbia actually lives in 2026.
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