Tricky Business: Self-Storage Site Layout

Teardowns of old cold-storage buildings and an upgrade re-install of larger climate-controlled buildings is moving the self-storage industry into a new phase. Old conventional buildings in downtown city cores are being converted into one- or two-story facilities all the time. In cottage areas, 45-foot heated and non-heated drive-through units with doors on both sides with 9-by-9 doors for storing off-season boats and RVs are definitely worth planning.

Laying out your site will require research, building code and bylaw experience and, most important, site-area maximization work with your design firm. Let the designers know you want to maximize your site to meet minimal building code requirements. Firms can get carried away with appearance, and building costs can rapidly escalate.

Stay involved in the process. You only get to build it once.

George Gray is the president for the Ontario-based Grayveld Builders Corp., a design/build company specializing in self-storage development. For information, call 866.855.2769; visit www.grayveld.com.