Why Older Buildings Add a Layer Kamloops Tenants Don't Always Expect
Kamloops has no shortage of older commercial buildings — downtown storefronts from the 1960s and '70s, converted warehouses along the rail corridor, and strip plazas that have changed hands and tenants more times than anyone can remember. Many of them are excellent spaces: good bones, character finishes, and rents that newer construction can't match. But an older shell brings a different kind of project than a space built in the last decade, and it's a difference that catches business owners off guard more often than it should.
The core issue is simple: buildings constructed before the 1990s were often built with materials and to code standards that no longer apply, and nobody knows exactly what's behind the walls, above the ceiling tiles, or under the flooring until a contractor opens them up. That uncertainty doesn't mean you should avoid an older building in Kamloops — it means you should budget and schedule for it properly from day one, instead of discovering it mid-project.
Hazardous Materials: What a Designated Substance Survey Actually Covers
Before any demolition can start on a commercial renovation in a building built prior to the early 1990s, WorkSafeBC requires a designated substance survey. This isn't optional paperwork — it's a legal requirement, and a contractor who skips it is putting your project and your workers at risk. The survey checks for asbestos-containing materials (common in old vinyl floor tile, pipe insulation, ceiling texture, and drywall joint compound), lead-based paint, and a handful of other regulated substances.
Most of the time, the survey comes back clean or with a small, manageable scope — a section of pipe wrap here, some tile mastic there. Occasionally it turns up more, particularly in buildings that saw heavy mechanical work decades ago. Either way, the survey has to happen before demo, which means it needs to be built into your schedule at the front end, not treated as a surprise delay once permits are already in motion. If abatement is required, it's handled by a certified contractor before the rest of the crew touches that area, and the cost and timeline both need to be part of your initial planning conversation.
Code Upgrades That Get Triggered by Change of Use
The other piece that surprises tenants in older Kamloops buildings is how much the BC Building Code cares about what you're changing, not just what you're building. Move from one occupancy classification to another — say, a retail space becoming a restaurant, or a warehouse becoming an office — and you can trigger requirements that have nothing to do with your actual scope of work: upgraded exit signage, wider accessible washrooms, improved fire separations between units, or a sprinkler system where there wasn't one before.
Older buildings feel this more than newer ones because the baseline they're starting from is further from today's code. A building permitted in 1978 was never required to meet 2026 accessibility or energy standards, and the City of Kamloops applies current code to the portions of the building affected by your renovation. This isn't a Kamloops quirk — it's how the BC Building Code works everywhere in the province — but it lands harder on an older shell simply because there's more distance to close. The fix isn't to avoid these buildings; it's to have a contractor and, ideally, a code consultant walk the space and flag the likely triggers before you finalize a lease or a budget, not after.
Budgeting and Scheduling Around the Unknowns
You can't eliminate the uncertainty that comes with an older building, but you can plan for it. A few habits make the difference between a project that absorbs surprises and one that blows past its deadline:
Build in a contingency of 10 to 15 percent above your quoted scope — higher than you'd carry on new construction — specifically to cover what a designated substance survey or an opened-up wall might reveal. Order the survey as early as possible, ideally before you're locked into a lease commencement date, so any abatement time is already accounted for rather than tacked on afterward. Ask your contractor directly what they've found in similar-vintage Kamloops buildings; a company that's worked downtown and in the older industrial areas for years has a good sense of what tends to turn up. And don't finalize an opening date with your landlord or your own staff until the survey results and a code review are in hand — a date set before those unknowns are resolved is a guess, not a plan.
None of this is a reason to shy away from an older Kamloops building. Many of the city's best commercial spaces are the older ones, and with the right upfront steps, a tenant improvement in a 1970s storefront can go just as smoothly as one in a brand-new shell. The difference is simply doing the homework before the demo starts instead of during it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every commercial renovation in Kamloops need a hazardous materials survey?
Any building constructed before the early 1990s generally requires a designated substance survey before demolition begins, regardless of how minor the renovation looks on paper. Newer buildings typically don't, but your contractor should confirm this based on the building's actual age and any past renovation history.
Who pays for asbestos abatement if it's found — the landlord or the tenant?
It depends entirely on your lease and work letter. Some landlords cover pre-existing hazardous materials as part of delivering the space, while others push it into the tenant's scope. This is exactly the kind of clause worth clarifying before you sign, since abatement costs can be significant if the survey turns up a larger scope.
How much extra time should I budget for an older building?
As a rule of thumb, add two to four weeks to your schedule for survey results, potential abatement, and any code review tied to a change of use, on top of your standard permitting and construction timeline. Projects that skip this buffer are the ones most likely to miss their opening date.
Can I still hit a fixed opening date in an older building?
Often, yes — but only if the survey and code review happen early enough to inform the schedule rather than disrupt it. A commercial contractor who's done this before in Kamloops can give you a realistic date once those two pieces are in hand, rather than an optimistic one before they are.
If you're eyeing an older commercial space in Kamloops and want a straight read on what it'll actually take to renovate, we're happy to walk it with you. [Request an estimate from Hodder Construction](https://www.hodder.ca/estimate) and we'll help you plan the project around the building's real condition, not just its floor plan.