Victoria makes it easier, cheaper to build garden suites

It will be easier for homeowners in Victoria to build garden suites on their properties after city council unanimously approved removing the requirement to rezone.

Council gave final approval to the city’s garden-suite initiative following a public hearing Thursday night, which means homeowners will no longer have to file rezoning applications or go through a long public hearing to build stand-alone suites.

Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps said the decision was “significant” with regard to the future of Victoria.

“I’m thrilled,” she said. “This really is a giant step forward.”

In the past, the cost to apply for rezoning was $4,000 and it took six to eight months to complete, without a guarantee of approval.

Under the changes, the cost will be $200 and the application process will take three to four weeks.

Garden-suite applications were previously evaluated by council on a case-by-case basis through the rezoning process. Development-permit approvals will now be done by city staff.

Helps said it is “astonishing” what the changes will mean to homeowners building secondary accommodation. The decision will not only ease the red tape, “it makes it a reality for people to buy a house, while at the same time adding to the rental stock. This is a win-win.”

A section addressing privacy concerns between neighbours has been added to the garden-suite building guidelines, including a recommendation against rooftop outdoor spaces. The existing requirements pertaining to size, setbacks and height will remain.

“There are privacy measures in the policy, so this is one of those rare cases where everyone wins,” Helps said.

The amendments are part of the city’s housing strategy, an effort to ease the city’s rental-unit shortage and improve housing affordability over the next decade. The vacancy rate in Victoria is estimated at 0.5 per cent, one of the lowest in the country.

“There is a rental-housing crisis across Victoria and across B.C.,” Helps said.

An influx of 20,000 residents is expected by 2041, which means an additional 13,500 apartment units and 2,700 other homes will be required, according to reports to council. There are 6,744 singlefamily dwellings in Victoria.

Helps expects the city will see a big jump in garden-suite applications. Since 2011, only 18 garden suites have been built legally in Victoria.

The changes take effect immediately, Helps said.

“I expect people through the door Tuesday morning.”