The City of Burnaby’s planning department has released a report on the upcoming zoning changes to accommodate the Province’s mandated Small Scale Multi Unit Housing (SSMUH) under Bill 44, passed in December 2023.

Bill 44 requires municipal governments to permit the following minimum number of housing units in land use zones that are otherwise restricted to single family dwellings or duplexes:

• 3 units on lots that are up to 3,014 SF;
• 4 units on lots that are greater than 3,014 SF; and
• 6 units on lots that are at least 3,025 SF & within 400 m of bus stops with frequent service.

The City’s proposed approach is to repeal all of the existing single family residential zones (R7 Mobile Home Park District and R1, R1a, R2, R2a, R3, R3a, R4, R4a, R5, R5a, R6, R8, R9, R9a, R10, R11, R12, and R12s) and replacing them with a single R1 SSMUH District.

The City is required to pass the zoning bylaw update by June 30, 2024.

There are currently 30,662 single family zoned lots in the City of Burnaby.

Details of Proposed R1 SSMUH Zoning

The following zoning provisions are proposed as part of a new Section 101, R1 Small Scale Multi-Unit Housing District, within the Zoning Bylaw:

• Uses:
  o Up to 6 dwelling units on a lot, depending on the lot size and proximity to a bus stop
  with frequent service
  o Rowhouses, which would permit up to 3 dwelling units on a lot
  o Boarding, lodging, or rooming house, subject to Comprehensive
  
• Subdivision:
  o For rowhouse dwellings, require a minimum lot width of 16 ft to 26 ft
  o For SSMUH subdivisions, require a minimum lot width of 33 ft
  o Subdivision to create panhandle lots will continue to be restricted, with
  individual consideration of irregular shaped lots to be determined by
  the Approving Officer.

• Number of Units:
  • 3 units on lots that are up to 3,014 SF;
  • 4 units on lots that are greater than 3,014 SF; and
  • 6 units on lots that are at least 3,025 SF & within 400 m of bus stops with frequent service.

• Lot Coverage:
  o 40% for 1 to 3 SSMUH dwelling units
  o 45% for 4 SSMUH dwelling units
  o 50% for 5 to 6 SSMUH dwelling units
  o 55% for rowhouse dwellings

• Parking

• Minimum 0.5 parking stalls per unit outside of lots within 400m Frequent Transit Network
• No parking minimums for lots within 400m Frequent Transit Network

Other

• Does not regulate tenure – can be either strata or rental
• Minimum of one 3-bedroom unit for lots with 1 to 3 units
• Minimum of two 3-bedroom units for lots with 4-6 units
• allows fee-simple rowhouses
• 70% maximum impervious surface requirement to support more lot area for stormwater management, tree retention, and outdoor amenity space for residents
• Building heights up to a maximum of 40 ft and 4 storeys, inclusive of any basement or cellar storey
• Reduced yard setbacks for buildings and introduce the concept of “street yards” to provide consistent setbacks from all property lines adjacent to streets
• Minimum separation of 8 ft between principal buildings and/or accessory buildings and a minimum separation of 20 ft between front and rear principal buildings on the same lot
• Minimum of 107 SF of outdoor amenity space for the exclusive use of each primary dwelling unit on a lot
• Heritage provisions that provide more flexibility in siting and massing of buildings for lots on the Community Heritage Register to support retention of heritage assets

The full council report can be viewed here: https://pub-burnaby.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=75285

The proposed R1 SSMUH zoning guidelines can be viewed here: https://pub-burnaby.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=75286

The District of North Vancouver is currently working on updating their zoning bylaws in response to the Province’s housing legislation regarding Transit Oriented Areas (TOAs) and Small-Scale Multi-Unit
Housing (SSMUH).

TOAs in the District of North Vancouver

There are two TOAs in the District: Phibbs Bus Exchange (the Phibbs TOA) and Capilano University Bus Exchange (the Cap U TOA) (see maps below).

The District estimates that the TOAs will see 1,800 units developed over the next 10 years, and that the overall theoretical maximum build out would see approximately 5,500 additional new units above the existing OCP.

SSMUH in the District

Bill 44 requires the District to approve a zoning bylaw that complies with SSMUH requirements by June 30, 2024, by allowing small-scale, multi-unit housing in zones that would otherwise be restricted to single-family dwellings or duplexes.

The SSMUH legislation requires that all residential zones permit a minimum of 3, 4 or 6 units depending on their size and proximity to frequent bus service.

Many of the lots in the District are located in creek, slope and wildfire hazard development permit areas and are therefore exempt.

Here’s the breakdown on lots under SSMUH:

• There are 19,961 single family zoned lots in the District
• 8,583 lots are exempted under DPAs and will remain single family zoned
• 8,494 lots are deemed to be “challenging” for servicing
• 2,884 lots are deemed feasible for servicing
• 1,295 lots are permitted 6-units (located within 400m of frequent bus service)

Full PDF versions of the SSMUH maps can be viewed here: https://www.dnv.org/sites/default/files/phipo-maps.pdf

Further information can be viewed here: https://www.dnv.org/community-environment/new-provincial-housing-legislation

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Gracorp has completed on the sale of a Broadway Plan tower site at 2175 West 7th Avenue in the Kits neighbourhood.

The 18,000 SF site mid-block site has a rezoning application for a 20-storey, 182-unit rental tower at a total density of 6.50 FSR.

The purchase price of $26,000,000 equates to $222 per buildable SF based on the density in the proposed rezoning application.

The City of Port Moody has released a staff report discussing the Province’s recent legislation and housing initiatives. Included in the report is an outline of the City’s proposed approach to the Transit Oriented Areas (TOAs), as well as proposed timing to create ACC’s, update DCC’s and update the OCP.

In Port Moody, the two TOAs that took effect immediately are:
– Inlet Centre Station
– Moody Centre Station

A map has now been generated by the City of Port Moody to show any parcel of land that is deemed to be within the catchment area of the TOA.

The above map can be viewed here.

The report notes that “the Province expects local governments to transition to new planning tools, such as the ACC Bylaw, by mid-2025. As such, staff will need to revisit and revise for Council’s consideration the policy to allow collection of density bonus funds above the new TOA FAR limits, while maintaining the 2.5 FAR threshold for the rest of the City in 2025.”

The report also references the City’s existing inclusionary zoning policy in the TOAs:

“Similarly, the new minimum densities in the TOAs will likely render the City’s Inclusionary Zoning –Affordable Housing Units Policy financially unfeasible. For cities that utilize a density bonus to achieve affordable units, they will no longer be able to do so, except on densities greater than the 3, 4, or 5 FARs allocated through the MD Framework within the TOAs. Port Moody’s Inclusionary Zoning Policy relies upon both the increased land value associated with a higher density and the density bonus itself. As the density bonus will begin at higher FARs within the TOAs, it is likely that inclusionary units will no longer be financially feasible for nearly all projects.

However, as part of the recent webinars, the Province has mentioned that future legislation will include the development of an inclusionary zoning program. The timeline for this legislation is likely Spring 2024 as referenced above.”

The report outlines the following proposed timeline for implementation of the new zoning bylaws to reflect the TOA policy:

Regarding DCC’s and ACC’s the City expects to develop bylaws for both beginning in late 2024, with an expectation to have bylaws adopted for both in late 2025.

Here is the proposed timeline for implementation of ACC’s:

Port Moody was in advanced stages of updating their OCP prior to the Province’s housing legislation. The OCP update has now been paused until next year as a result of the new TOA policy.

Multiple municipalities have now referenced forthcoming legislation from the Province regarding inclusionary zoning, expected in “Spring 2024”.

A full version of the Council report can be viewed here: https://pub-portmoody.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=22270