2,000 sq. m big enough for farmhouse, says council

New houses on Kelowna farmland should not have a residential footprint of more than 2,000 square metres, city councillors say.

Councillors unanimously agreed the proposed size limit, similar to restrictions in other B.C. communities, would help protect agricultural land.

However, Coun. Gail Given acknowledged there could be a diversity of opinion when the proposal is brought to a public hearing on June 12 for citizen comment.

“I’m quite supportive of this,” Given said. “Of course, we have a public hearing to go through, and we undoubtedly will have additional feedback.”

Coun. Mohini Singh commended staff on bringing forward the proposal to limit the size of new homes on farmland.

A residential footprint includes the house, parking areas, landscaping, and amenities such as swimming pools and tennis courts.

Currently, about 11 per cent of the 1,900 homes on properties with a farming designation have a residential footprint of more than 2,000 square metres.

But the construction of such super-size estates is increasing, city officials say. Between 2007 and 2014, 30 per cent of the 94 new homes built on Kelowna properties with the Agricultural Land Reserve had a residential footprint of more than 2,000 square metres.