How do I get a variance when my house or shop doesn't fit the setback or height?

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Ask the council or board for a development variance permit, which can vary siting, size and other rules but never the use or density, or ask the board of variance for a minor variance causing undue hardship. A zoning bylaw sets where a building can sit and how big it can be. The Local Government Act gives an owner two ways round those numbers without a rezoning: a development variance permit, issued by the council or regional board, and an order from the board of variance, an independent board every local government with a zoning bylaw must set up. Neither can change what the land may be used for or how many homes it may hold. Look up the address or PID on PlaceDossier to see the record for that lot. What a variance permit can vary: On an owner's application, a council or regional board may issue a development variance permit varying its zoning, subdivision and other land use bylaws: setbacks, height, lot coverage, parking and the like. It can't vary the use or density of the land, the residential rental tenure zoning, or a floodplain specification (Local Government Act s. 498 (1), (2)). Where the permit and the bylaw conflict, the permit wins (s. 498 (3)). How it's decided: Before the council or board decides, it mails or delivers a notice to the owners and tenants of the land and of the parcels within a distance its bylaw sets, at least 10 days ahead, saying what the permit would do and where to read it (s. 499). A local government may by bylaw let a staff member issue a permit for a minor variance of siting, size, dimensions, parking, signs or landscaping, with no notice, and the owner may then ask the council to reconsider (ss. 498.1, 499 (1.1)). Application fees are in each local government's own bylaw. Once issued: The local government files a notice of the permit in the land title office, and its terms bind everyone who later owns the land (s. 503). If construction isn't substantially started within 2 years of the permit, it lapses, unless the permit says otherwise (s. 504). The board of variance: Every local government with a zoning bylaw must set up a board of variance of 3 or 5 members who aren't council members or staff (ss. 536, 537). An owner who says a rule on the siting, size or dimensions of a building causes them hardship can apply to it, as can one wanting to alter a building whose use no longer conforms (s. 540). The board notifies the owners and tenants of the land and the land next to it (s. 541). What the board can order: A minor variance, if it finds undue hardship and that the variance won't make the site's development inappropriate, harm the natural environment, substantially affect the neighbours' use and enjoyment of their land, vary the uses or densities, or defeat the bylaw's intent; never against a covenant under s. 219, a matter a permit or land use contract covers, a floodplain specification or protected heritage property. Its decision is final, and it lapses if construction isn't substantially started within 2 years (s. 542). When the use or density is the problem: A variance can't help. A rezoning changes the zone for good (see rezoning), and a temporary use permit allows a use for up to three years at a time (see temporary use permits). A house that was lawful before the bylaw changed may stay as it is without either (see a house older than its zone). What it means for a buyer: A house that sits over a setback may have a variance on its title, or may simply be non-conforming or built without approval; the title search and the council's property file tell them apart. On land you plan to build on, a variance is a request, not a right: neighbours are told and can object, and the council or board decides.

How do I get a variance when my house or shop doesn't fit the setback or height?

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Before you buy: who to ask