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Council considering allowing more house suites in duplexes

Allowing more suites seen as a way to boost local housing opportunities
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(Advocate file photo)

City council is considering changes to duplex planning regulations to allow owners to set up house suites, a move that would expand local housing opportunities.

A new Direct Control District has been proposed for a duplex on Rutherford Drive. If the new Direct Control District is approved, it would allow house suites to be considered in duplexes on a case-by-case basis.

Under the current Zoning Bylaw, house suites are permitted use in residential zones, but only for houses not duplexes. However, they were once allowed under former regulations, with 34 duplexes approved for house suites in 2010-11.

The creation of a new Direct Control  District "will be used as a tool to evaluate applications for house suites in duplexes to ensure administration can exercise discretion when reviewing such requests," says a report to city council.

The demand for house suites (often called basement suites although they can be anywhere in a home) appears to be on the rise. Since the Rutherford Drive application was received last September, the city has received several other inquiries from duplex owners considering house suites.

Expanding housing opportunities is a city priority. The Zoning Bylaw is being overhauled and planners will likely recommend that house suites be allowed in more types of housing as part of the community consultation process. Allowing homeowners to set up income-producing suites is seen as a way to help people meet mortgage payments while creating additional rental opportunities in a city where vacancy rates are rock bottom.

The city has about 30 Direct Control Zones, which are set up when council wants a say in how they are developed. Often they are created when a unique use is proposed for a piece of land.

An option was to amend duplex zoning to allow a house suite as a discretionary use.

However, since the community was not consulted, the planning department did not think it was fair to make such a significant zoning change without public input.

Creating the Direct Control Zone means all duplex owners who want to pursue a house suite must first successfully apply for a zoning change. City planners say the process will allow them to test how well duplex house suites are working.

Council gave first reading to the zoning amendments, which is expected to come back to council at its next meeting in the new year.