Gander to regulate use of shipping containers for sheds, businesses

The Town of Gander is trying to figure out what to do about the use of shipping containers for sheds by both residents and businesses.

Shipping containers, sometimes calleddry freight containers, are closed steel boxes that are usually six metres long and designed to be stackableforlong voyages atsea.

• VIDEO |Turning a shipping container into your next home

In recent years, the idea of usingshipping containers for homes, sheds and other structures has gained traction in Gander, which the chair of the town's public safety committee says has prompted months of debate at council meetings.

"These things are cropping up because they're really cost-effective. In other words they're a cheap source of storage so people are able to access them and bring them in at a very low cost," Pat Woodford told CBCRadio'sCentral Morning Show.

"Some of our citizens have complained that neighbours have put these shipping containers on their property and are using them as garages, and they're storing combustibles like gasoline."

Without proper ventilation, fumes and pressure can build up,causing an explosion risk, which Woodford said is also a concern for the fire department.

"If they explode it could be very detrimental to the safety of the community," he said.

Another issue the town has been discussing is the appearance of the containers, which some residents have complained about.

The containers are often delivered to businesses full of goods, and then sometimes the businesses will just buy the container to keep for storage. That means they're sometimes old and not exactly the prettiest things to look at, said Woodford.

"They're sometimes rusty and deteriorated, they don't do anything for the estheticof our community, and if the business property is bordering on a residential neighbourhood they're an eyesore for the residents," he said.

Plan for regulations

Another major concern council has are people who runbusinesses out ofcontainers, which aren't regulated or taxed, said Woodford, unlike otherbusinesses that pay taxes and invest money in bringing their facilities up to code.

Some communities have banned the use of shipping containers altogether on private property, but council decided there is some value in them so opted not to go that route.

Instead, they're now going to develop a container regulation policy, after getting feedback from the local chamber of commerce and other stakeholders. Council is also asking the public to get in touch with any suggestions or concerns they may have.

"This wasn't taken lightly. We felt that it is time to take some action," Woodford said.

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