Fire safety plans for West Vancouver buildings, prepared to West Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services’ 2026 review guide, submitted as vector PDFs with the pre-incident plan the department requires, and based on a physical audit of the building.
Who needs a fire safety plan in West Vancouver
West Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services enforces Section 2.8 of the BC Fire Code through the District’s Fire Rescue Bylaw No. 5163. Every building with a fire alarm system, every assembly, care or detention occupancy, every high building and every sprinklered building needs a fire safety plan, and the bylaw requires a plan box inside the primary entrance.
That covers the mid-rise and high-rise apartment buildings along Marine Drive in Ambleside, the village retail and low-rise apartments of Dundarave, the commercial buildings and ferry-terminal area of Horseshoe Bay, Caulfeild Village and the residential areas around it, the new hillside village planned at Cypress, and the schools, daycares, care homes, recreation centres and places of worship across the District.
How West Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services reviews a plan
West Vancouver has the most detailed review process on the North Shore and publishes it in its 2026 external guide for fire safety plans, pre-incident plans and construction fire safety plans. Everything is submitted by email as high-resolution vector PDFs, never scans or paper binders, with file names in the department’s format. A pre-incident plan is required with every fire safety plan, and the planner must request the pre-incident plan number and map grid number from the department before drawing it. The old Vital Information Form is no longer used.
The department audits each submission for major omissions and minor deficiencies. A plan for an existing building that is drawn from drawings alone, without a current physical site audit, is a major omission, which is why every West Vancouver plan we prepare starts with a site visit. Drawings are 11 by 17 colour landscape sheets, the plan goes in a red binder with red and white tabs, and the acceptance letter is kept in the front. Planners whose plans pass two consecutive reviews with few deficiencies are placed on the department’s Approved Fire Safety Planners List.
Fire safety plan and pre-incident plan reviews are charged hourly; construction fire safety plans are reviewed without a fee. We confirm the current rates at submission and include them in your quote. Construction, alteration and demolition sites need a construction fire safety plan before work starts, with the department’s hot work and dangerous goods permits and a report on the protection of adjacent buildings as appendices, a weatherproof copy posted in the site office, an update when the site moves from excavation to vertical construction, and a site sign of the required size. Our construction division at constructionfiresafetyplans.ca prepares those plans.
The buildings we plan for in West Vancouver
Mid-rise and high-rise apartment buildings and the retail strip along Marine Drive in Ambleside. Village retail and low-rise apartments in Dundarave. Village commercial buildings and the ferry-terminal area of Horseshoe Bay. Caulfeild Village shopping centre and the residential areas around it. The new mixed-use hillside village under development at Cypress. Schools, daycares, care homes, recreation centres and places of worship across the District.
Keeping a West Vancouver plan current
Review the plan every year and update it whenever the Fire Safety Director, property manager, monitoring company or building systems change, keep the pre-incident plan in step with it, run the annual drill and keep the records in the plan box inside the primary entrance. Resubmissions go by email in the same vector PDF format.
How it works with FireSafetyPlan.com
- Firm quote in one business day. One upfront price based on building type and size, with any fire department review fee included.
- Site visit. We confirm exits, fire alarm panel and annunciator, sprinkler and standpipe connections, shut-offs and the plan box location, and photograph the fire protection systems.
- Draft in five to seven business days. CAD drawings and the full written plan, sent to you for review before anything is submitted.
- Submission and approval. We submit to the fire department, handle any revisions they ask for, and deliver the accepted plan in print and PDF, with wall plaques and a plan box if you need them.
Approval is guaranteed. If the fire department sends back a plan we prepared, we revise it at no charge until it is accepted.
Recent West Vancouver projects
A few of the West Vancouver buildings we have prepared fire safety plans for, and what made each one different.
- A 1921 wood-frame church on Inglewood Avenue: fully sprinklered, with seven exits spread over two levels that each open to grade.
- A six-storey seniors’ residence on 22nd Street: the first alarm stage rings only at the front desk, and staff have five minutes to check it.
- A 1968 squash club on Klahanie Court: sprinklered, with no fire alarm, and its main valves reached through a crawlspace.
- A mixed-use building on Royal Avenue: two street addresses, two annunciators and one alarm for 12 shops and 16 suites.
- A 1971 residential high-rise on 21st Street: it shares a parkade, and part of its alarm, with the building next door.
Frequently asked questions — West Vancouver
Why does West Vancouver insist on a site audit?
Because the department audits plans against the building. A plan drawn from architectural drawings alone misses relocated panels, changed tenancies and missing equipment, and the department classes that as a major omission. Our plans are drawn from a physical audit of the building as it stands.
What is the pre-incident plan number?
A reference the department assigns to each building for its own response records. The planner requests the pre-incident plan number and map grid number before preparing the pre-incident plan, and they appear on the drawings. We handle the request.
Is there a review fee?
Fire safety plan and pre-incident plan reviews are charged by the hour; construction fire safety plans are reviewed free of charge. We confirm the current rates and include any fee in your quote.
West Vancouver fire safety plan quote: (778) 574-2895. We reply within one business day.
Read more: strata fire safety plan requirements in BC, what a fire safety plan costs in BC, or request a quote.
Need a fire safety plan approved?
Firm quote within one business day. Approval guaranteed.