Urban One Builders
Urban One Builders is a Vancouver-based full-service general contractor founded in 2010, delivering large-scale mixed-use residential, institutional, and supportive/affordable housing projects across British Columbia, with mass timber and LEED-certified delivery as core differentiators.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersVancouver, Canada
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Urban One Builders does
Urban One Builders is a Vancouver-based, full-service general contractor founded in 2010 that delivers large-scale mixed-use residential, institutional, and supportive/affordable housing projects across British Columbia, with one flagship project in Calgary. The firm operates three explicit segments (Mixed-Use Residential, Institutional, and Supportive & Affordable Housing) and is differentiated by advanced technical capability in mass timber construction, demonstrated by delivery of UBC Brock Commons, an 18-storey student residence that was the tallest wood building in the world at completion, erected at a pace of 17 floors in 9 working weeks through offsite prefabrication. The company also holds deep expertise in complex geometry (e.g., 63-storey twisting tower at 1151 W Georgia), LEED-certified delivery (multiple LEED Gold projects), and Indigenous partnership construction, including projects with the K'ómoks First Nation and Musqueam First Nation that achieved Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certified Gold and BC Net Zero outcomes. The business model is project-based: revenue is generated through fixed-price, cost-plus, and design-build contracts secured via competitive tenders, RFP responses, and established relationships with real estate developers, school districts, universities, and non-profit clients. Supporting technology includes BIM coordination and laser point-cloud scanning for as-built excavation modeling, and a formalized pre-qualified trade partner network underpins project execution. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed.
Urban One Builders firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Urban One Builders
- Legal name
- Urban One Builders
- Website
- https://urbanonebuilders.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Urban One Builders is a Vancouver-based full-service general contractor founded in 2010, delivering large-scale mixed-use residential, institutional, and supportive/affordable housing projects across British Columbia, with mass timber and LEED-certified delivery as core differentiators.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Urban One Builders industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Commercial Construction Services
- NAICS
- Residential Building Construction (2361), New Multifamily Housing Construction (except For-Sale Builders) (236116), Commercial and Institutional Building Construction (236220), New Housing For-Sale Builders (236117)
- SIC
- Operative Builders (1531)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Multi-Family Residential Construction (Apartments, Condos, Townhomes) (IMAFABAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Government & Civic Building Construction (Courthouses, City Halls, Public Safety) (IMAFACAF), Residential Affordable Housing Development & Construction (IMAFABAI), New School Construction (Greenfield Builds) (EDAEABAA), Independent Living Community Development & Construction (Senior Housing Developers) (HLADAAAH), Residential Design-Build & Renovation-Integrated Builders (IMAFABAE)
Keywords
Where Urban One Builders is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Vancouver
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Urban One Builders business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- General Construction Services: Full-service construction company providing general contracting and construction management services for large-scale projects. Revenue is generated through fixed-price contracts, cost-plus contracts, and design-build arrangements with developers, institutions, and government entities.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Urban One Builders product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Urban One Builders is a full-service construction company delivering large-scale mixed-use residential, institutional, and supportive/affordable housing projects across British Columbia. The firm acts as general contractor and construction manager on technically complex builds, with specialized capability in mass timber high-rise construction, LEED-certified delivery, and design-build arrangements for developers, universities, school districts, and government clients.
Product overview
Urban One Builders is a full-service construction company offering a comprehensive portfolio of building services across British Columbia. The company operates three core service lines: Mixed-Use Residential Construction, Institutional Construction, and Supportive & Affordable Housing development. The company specializes in large-scale, complex projects including mass timber construction, and maintains a network of pre-qualified trade partners. Projects span Metro Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, and surrounding areas, ranging from mid-rise residential buildings to world-record tall mass timber structures and landmark institutional facilities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Mixed-Use Residential Construction Full-service general contracting and construction management for large-scale mixed-use residential developments, including high-rise and mid-rise towers, rental housing, and combined retail/office/residential projects across British Columbia.
- Institutional Construction Design-build and construction management services for academic facilities, student residences, community centres, and campus buildings delivered for school districts, universities, colleges, and non-profit institutions.
- Supportive & Affordable Housing Construction Construction of supportive, affordable, and non-market housing developments, including projects incorporating Indigenous cultural partnerships and mixed market/non-market unit configurations.
- Mass Timber Construction Specialized delivery of advanced wood-based building systems using prefabricated timber components for tall wood structures, applicable to student housing, academic facilities, and other institutional buildings where rapid offsite prefabrication and sustainable construction are required.
Quantifiable outcome
- Built the tallest wood building in the world - 18-storey UBC Brock Commons at 53 metres
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Urban One Builders
Customer profileNamed customers22 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Urban One Builders technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Urban One Builders partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
21 partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.
- Arno MatiscoreArchitect for Aperture project - a distinctive residential development in Vancouver's Oakridge neighbourhood featuring signature facade inspired by camera apertures.
- DYS Architecture / MCM ArchitectscoreArchitectural partners for 1151 W Georgia project - Arthur Erickson-inspired 63-storey twisting tower with complex geometry.
- Acton OstrycoreArchitect for UBC Brock Commons - the 18-storey mass timber student residence that became the tallest wood building in the world.
- hcmacoreArchitect for Quw'utsun Secondary - state-of-the-art academic facility in Duncan, BC featuring mass timber construction.
- Acton Ostry ArchitectscoreArchitect for Jewish Community Centre Vancouver - 200,000 SF six-storey facility designed with inclusion and sustainability.
- HDRcoreArchitect for tul'al'txw at North Island College - 108,256 SF student housing developed with Indigenous cultural values.
- DYS ArchitecturecoreArchitect for W2 project - 12-storey residential building in Vancouver's Olympic Village.
- IBI GroupcoreArchitect for Foster Martin - three-tower mixed-use development in White Rock.
- WA ArchitectscoreArchitect for Opal Victoria - luxury age-in-place retirement community in Vic West, Victoria.
- Merrick ArchitecturecoreArchitect for Tate Downtown - 40-storey luxury residential tower with curvilinear form.
- Dialog ArchitecturecoreArchitect for 1188 Bidwell - 22-storey mixed-use rental development in Vancouver's West End.
- Giannone Perticone ArchitectscoreArchitect for Verve - 26-storey tower and landmark in Calgary's East Village neighbourhood.
- MA + HG ArchitectscoreArchitect for E15 - four-storey wood frame building in Vancouver's Mount Pleasant with exceptional communal courtyard.
- Integra ArchitecturecoreArchitect for Broadview Village - six-storey mixed-use development in Burnaby forming first phase of Cascade/Broadview Heights Master Plan.
- Chris Dikeakos ArchitectscoreArchitect for Triomphe - 46-storey luxury residential tower as architectural gateway to Brentwood in Burnaby.
- W.T. Leung ArchitectscoreArchitect for Park Residences - concrete mixed-use development in Richmond with 60-foot pool on fourth-level podium.
- RH ArchitectscoreArchitect for Chloe - five-storey high-end concrete residential building in Kerrisdale.
- K'ómoks First NationflagshipIndigenous partner for tul'al'txw project - developed in close partnership with K'ómoks First Nation and K'ómoks Connections Committee, shaped by Indigenous cultural values.
- Musqueam First NationflagshipIndigenous partner for Arbutus Centre Phase I - xwƛ̓əpicən ('the hollow') affordable housing building named by Musqueam First Nation.
- Trade Contractors and Mechanical ContractorcoreCollaborative value engineering effort with mechanical contractor transitioned mechanical system from four-pipe fan coil to VRF system, delivering approximately $800,000 in cost savings on Foster Martin project.
- Pre-Qualified Trade PartnerscoreNetwork of qualified, reliable trade partners invited to bid on future opportunities through pre-qualified trade list program.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Urban One Builders competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- EllisDon: Major Canadian construction services company delivering commercial, institutional, and multi-family residential projects across Canada, including major BC builds. Larger and more diversified than Urban One, but directly competes on institutional and mixed-use RFPs.
- Pomerleau: Major Canadian construction firm active in BC, Quebec, and Ontario delivering institutional, commercial, and residential projects at scale. Compares on services and BC presence, but operates a substantially larger and more geographically diversified portfolio.
- PCL Construction: One of Canada's largest general contractors delivering commercial, institutional, civil, and multi-family residential projects nationally. Competes with Urban One on large institutional and mixed-use RFPs in BC, but operates a much broader portfolio beyond the residential-tower niche.
- Bird Construction: Publicly traded Canadian general contractor with national institutional, commercial, and multi-family residential operations including Western Canada. Competes on larger institutional mandates and BC projects, but at significantly greater scale and with broader industrial exposure.
Direct peers
- Kindred Construction: Vancouver-based general contractor delivering custom residential, multi-family, and select commercial projects in BC. Closely comparable in regional focus and mid-rise residential mix, though smaller and more weighted to custom residential than Urban One's high-rise tower work.
- StructureCraft: BC-based mass timber and engineered-wood construction specialist delivering tall wood buildings and timber structures across North America. Directly comparable on the mass timber / engineered wood niche that Urban One's UBC Brock Commons established, though more timber-pure and less of a general builder.
- Reid Jones Construction (RJC) / Ventana Construction: BC-based commercial and multi-family residential general contractor active in Metro Vancouver and Victoria. Overlaps Urban One on mixed-use, multi-family, and select institutional segments, with similar geographic concentration in BC.
- Axiom Builders: Vancouver-based full-service general contractor focused on mixed-use residential, commercial, and select institutional projects across Metro Vancouver and BC. Closely comparable to Urban One in scale, segment mix (multi-family towers, mid-rise), and BC developer relationships.
- Ledcor Group: Large, privately held Canadian construction firm with deep operations in BC delivering commercial, residential, and institutional projects including mass timber work. Highly comparable on services and regional footprint, with greater scale and a broader geographic reach.
Emerging players
- Element5: Canadian mass timber manufacturer and erector specializing in prefabricated timber structures. Overlaps Urban One on mass timber delivery capability, but operates as a specialist supplier/erector rather than a full-service general contractor.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Urban One Builders social profiles
Digital presenceUrban One Builders compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance7 records
Urban One Builders financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Urban One Builders leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Urban One Builders funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Urban One Builders M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Urban One Builders
What does Urban One Builders do?
Urban One Builders is a full-service construction company delivering large-scale mixed-use residential, institutional, and supportive/affordable housing projects across British Columbia. The firm acts as general contractor and construction manager on technically complex builds, with specialized capability in mass timber high-rise construction, LEED-certified delivery, and design-build arrangements for developers, universities, school districts, and government clients.
Is Urban One Builders a public or private company?
Urban One Builders is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Urban One Builders founded?
Urban One Builders was founded in 2010. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Urban One Builders based?
Urban One Builders is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Urban One Builders make money?
One revenue line is on record: general Construction Services.
Who are Urban One Builders's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are EllisDon, Pomerleau, PCL Construction and Bird Construction. Direct peers are Kindred Construction, StructureCraft, Reid Jones Construction (RJC) / Ventana Construction, Axiom Builders and Ledcor Group. Element5 is listed as an emerging player.
Does Urban One Builders have an API?
No public API is recorded for Urban One Builders.
What industry is Urban One Builders in?
Urban One Builders's product category is Commercial Construction Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAFABAB, Multi-Family Residential Construction (Apartments, Condos, Townhomes), with a secondary code of IMAFACAF, Government & Civic Building Construction (Courthouses, City Halls, Public Safety). Its NAICS code is 2361 and its SIC code is 1531.