PlaceDossier / Zoning / Zone codes
P-1 zoning in BC
P-1 (also written P1) means whatever the bylaw that zones the lot says: there is no provincial P-1 zone. 31 bylaws we've summarised use it, from 25 local governments. It goes by 17 names: Public Institutional (9 bylaws), Civic Institutional (4 bylaws), Parks and Recreation (3 bylaws), Recreational (2 bylaws) and 13 more. What it allows is below, bylaw by bylaw.
P-1 in each bylaw
| Local government | Homes allowed | Smallest lot for a subdivision | Lot coverage | Height limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Shuswap Regional District Public and Institutional · South Shuswap Zoning Bylaw No. 701 | A caretaker's home | 1 ha | Not set | Not set |
| Regional District of East Kootenay Public Institutional · Jaffray, Tie Lake, Rosen Lake Land Use and Floodplain Management Bylaw No. 1414, 1999 | One dwelling, accessory to a use on the lot (the designation's table; set back as the main building, s. 5.09(5)) | None set in the designation | 25% | 10 m |
| Regional District of East Kootenay Public Institutional · Wycliffe Zoning & Floodplain Management Bylaw No. 2256, 2010 | One dwelling, accessory to a use on the lot: a manufactured home on a non-permanent foundation, or a self-contained unit built into the main building above the first storey or behind the main use, with its own outside door (s. 1.18(3)) | None set in the zone | 25% | 10 m |
| Regional District of East Kootenay Public Institutional · South Country Zoning & Floodplain Management Bylaw No. 2320, 2011 | Multiple family dwellings; and one dwelling accessory to another use on the lot: a manufactured home on a non-permanent foundation, or a self-contained unit built into the main building above the first storey or behind the main use, with its own outside door (the zone; s. 1.18(3)) | None set in the zone | 25% | 10 m |
| Regional District of East Kootenay Public Institutional · Electoral Area E Zoning and Floodplain Management Bylaw No. 2502, 2014 | One dwelling, accessory to a use on the lot: a manufactured home on a non-permanent foundation, or a self-contained unit built into the main building above the first storey or behind the main use, with its own outside door (the zone; s. 1.18(3)) | None set in the zone | 25% | 10 m |
| Regional District of East Kootenay Public Institutional · Steeples Zoning & Floodplain Management Bylaw No. 2615, 2015 | One dwelling, accessory to a use on the lot: a manufactured home up to 5 m tall on a non-permanent foundation, or a self-contained unit built into the main building above the first storey or behind the main use, with its own outside door (s. 1.11(3)) (the zone; s. 1.18(4)) | None set in the zone | 25% | 10 m |
| Regional District of East Kootenay Public Institutional · Electoral Area C South Zoning & Floodplain Management Bylaw No. 2913, 2019 | One dwelling, accessory to a use on the lot: a manufactured home on a non-permanent foundation, or a self-contained unit built into the main building above the first storey or behind the main use, with its own outside door (s. 1.18(4)) | None set in the zone | 25% | 10 m |
| Regional District of East Kootenay Public Institutional · Columbia Valley Zoning Bylaw No. 3255, 2023 | One dwelling, accessory to an institution on the lot | None set in the zone | Not set | Main building 12 m, accessory buildings 5 m, a detached dwelling 9 m, a manufactured home 5 m |
| Thompson-Nicola Regional District Recreational · TNRD Zoning Bylaw No. 2400, 2012 | A caretaker's home | 1,000 m² | 10% | Not set |
| City of Abbotsford Civic Institutional Zone · City of Abbotsford Zoning Bylaw No. 2400-2014 | One accessory home for a caretaker or manager, which may be a certified mobile home on a foundation | Not set | 50% | 18.0 m or six storeys, whichever is less |
| District of Barriere Recreational · District of Barriere Zoning Bylaw No. 111 | None | No minimum | No maximum | No maximum |
| City of Burnaby Parks, Open Spaces and Natural Areas · Burnaby Zoning Bylaw 2026, No. 14815 | No homes are listed as a use (s. 5.1.2.1). Only a building on the Community Heritage Register, on public land, may hold homes (for an artist in residence, housing or a caretaker, by the bylaw's definition of heritage adaptive use) or small visitor accommodation (a bed and breakfast, guest house or boutique hotel for at most 10 people) (s. 5.1.3, Part 2) | None set in the district | None set in the district, nor a share of permeable surface (Part 4-4.3) | Not limited (s. 5.1.4) |
| District of Clearwater Parks and Recreation · District of Clearwater Zoning Bylaw No. 133, 2016 | One caretaker home | 350 m² | 10%, all buildings together | No maximum |
| Village of Clinton Public Use · Village of Clinton Zoning Bylaw No. 607, 2025 | None | 450 m², 10 m wide | 60% | 12 m |
| City of Coquitlam Civic Institutional · City of Coquitlam Zoning Bylaw No. 3000, 1996 | No ordinary homes. Congregate housing and care (a building of licensed care, assisted living or supportive housing units with shared dining or care services), transitional housing for people who are or may become homeless, and emergency shelters are allowed (s. 2001(2); Part 2) | No minimum set in the zone; an assembly use needs at least 555 m² (s. 2001(4)). Subdivision without City water and sewer: at least 1.25 ha (0.4 ha with City water but no sewer) (s. 602(2)) | Buildings and structures 40%; parking, or parking structures with all other buildings, 95% (s. 2001(6)); floor area at most 2.5 times the lot area (s. 2001(5)) | 11.0 m; parking structures 12.5 m (s. 2001(10)) |
| City of Cranbrook Public Institutional · City of Cranbrook Zoning Bylaw No. 3977, 2019 | No house: one home accessory to a use the zone lists (ss. 7.23.2(a), 7.23.3); a rest home is a listed use (s. 7.23.1) | No minimum set in the zone; a lot under 2.0 ha is connected to City sewer (s. 5.01.4) | No limit set in the zone | 20.0 m (s. 7.23.5) |
| City of Fort St. John Parks, Recreation and Natural Areas · City of Fort St. John Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 | None: the zone lists no home of any kind, not even a caretaker suite (s. 26.2) | None set: the zone's table gives 0 m² and 0.0 m wide (s. 26.3, Table 25) | None set in the zone (s. 26.3, Table 25) | 10.0 m for buildings and structures (s. 26.3, Table 25) |
| City of Kamloops Parks and Recreation · City of Kamloops Zoning Bylaw No. 55, 2021 | None: the zone lists no dwelling | Not set | Not set | Not set |
| City of Kelowna Major Institutional · City of Kelowna Zoning Bylaw No. 12375 | Apartments as a secondary use | 460 m², 13 m wide, 30 m deep (s. 14.10) | 50% for buildings; 70% for buildings, structures and hard surfaces (s. 14.12) | 6 storeys and 22 m; 2.0 FAR (s. 14.14) |
| District of Lake Country Public Park and Open Space · District of Lake Country Zoning Bylaw 561, 2007 | No house: one residential security operator unit (a home for a caretaker, operator or staff on the site) as a secondary use, at most one a site (s. 18.1; definition in s. 3.3) | None set: the zone gives no minimum width, depth or area (s. 18.1) | None set in the zone | 13.5 m or 3 storeys (s. 18.1) |
| City of Langley Public Institutional · City of Langley Zoning Bylaw, 2025, No. 3300 | No house: one caretaker's home only, as an accessory use, at most 93 m² (ss. 1.3, 2.4(g); s. 8, P1 zone); senior citizens' care facilities are a principal use | None set: no smallest lot or frontage (s. 8, P1 zone) | None set, nor a floor area ratio (s. 8, P1 zone) | As the Langley Regional Airport Zoning Regulations allow; no limit of the zone's own for main or accessory buildings (s. 8, P1 zone) |
| Township of Langley Civic Institutional · Township of Langley Zoning Bylaw 1987 No. 2500 | One house or mobile home per lot for the owner, manager or caretaker of the use and their family (s. 801.2); seniors' housing (rental homes of at most 70 m² for elderly people, with shared dining and services, never strata-titled; s. 102) | 1,858 m² (s. 110.1) | 50% (s. 801.3) | 15 m; seniors' housing 4 storeys (s. 801.5) |
| Village of Lytton Public · Village of Lytton Zoning Bylaw No. 484, 1998 | None | 205 m² on a community sewer, 4,000 m² without | Not set | Buildings 12 m |
| City of Maple Ridge Park and School · City of Maple Ridge Zoning Bylaw No. 7600-2019 | At most one home, accessory to the park, school or other use: a caretaker's home (inside the same building as the main use with its own entrance at grade, 37 to 90 m² and at most 40% of the building) or a house of at most 300 m² of floor area; on a lot of 668 m² or more, never strata-titled (ss. 901.3, 901.4(3), 901.11(2), 402.7). The house here is an accessory use, so we read urban infill (s. 402.29, for zones allowing a house as a principal use) as not applying (our reading) | None set for the zone; an animal shelter needs 2.0 ha, assembly or a home 668 m² (s. 901.4, Schedule B) | 40%, all buildings together; floor space ratio 0.5 (ss. 901.5, 901.6) | 11.0 m; a house 9.5 m, assembly 18.0 m, a school or indoor commercial recreation 15.0 m (s. 901.8) |
| City of Merritt Park and Cemetery · City of Merritt Zoning Bylaw No. 2284, 2020 | None | 450 m², 15 m wide, 30 m deep (none for community gardens, playgrounds or plazas) | 30% | 16 m or 4 storeys |
| City of Penticton Public Assembly · City of Penticton Zoning Bylaw No. 2024-22 | Congregate housing; security or operator homes of up to 100 m² each (the zone doesn't set a number) | 560 m², 15 m wide | 40% | 12 m |
| City of Port Coquitlam Civic Institutional · City of Port Coquitlam Zoning Bylaw, 2008, No. 3630 | No homes but an accessory caretaker's (Table 5.3)Exceptions (2)
Listed in Table 5.3, Notes 7 and 8 of the bylaw. | None set for area, width or depth; frontage at least 10% of the lot's perimeter (Table 5.2) | 40%; the zone sets no floor area ratio (Table 5.4) | None set in the zone, but above-ground utilities stay inside buildings up to 12 m high (Table 5.4; Table 5.3, Note 4) |
| City of Port Moody Civic Service · City of Port Moody Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 | No ordinary homes: non-market housing (subsidised housing such as shelters, transitional, supportive and other affordable housing) as a main use, and a caretaker's home as a secondary use (s. 13.1.2; s. 4) | 744 m², 15.0 m wide (ss. 3.2, 13.1.7) | 50%; no floor area ratio set (s. 13.1.3) | 15.0 m or 5 storeys (s. 13.1.3) |
| City of Prince George Parks and Recreation · City of Prince George Zoning Bylaw No. 7850, 2007 | One residential security/operator unit, as a secondary use (s. 13.1.3) | 500 m², 15.0 m wide; no minimum for a park (s. 13.1.4) | 30% (s. 13.1.5) | 12.0 m (s. 13.1.5) |
| City of Revelstoke Public Use – Parks and Public Use · City of Revelstoke Zoning Bylaw No. 2406, 2025 | No house: up to two employee dwelling units a lot as an accessory use, for an owner, employee, manager or caretaker who lives and works on the lot, each with at most one kitchen and one wet bar (ss. 9.2.2(15), 9.2.3(1), 9.2.4(5); s. 3 definition) | None set: the zone sets no smallest lot (s. 9.2.3) | None set in the zone (s. 9.2.3) | None set in the zone (s. 9.2.3); s. 4.2's height exemptions apply (s. 9.2.4(3)) |
| District of Saanich Assembly · District of Saanich Zoning Bylaw No. 8200 | At most one home, for the owner, operator, manager or caretaker of the use it serves (accessory residential, s. 2) | No minimum set in the zone | None set in the zone | 10.0 m (s. 1001.3) |
Listed by local government, not ranked. "Not set" means the zone itself sets no figure; general rules elsewhere in its bylaw may still apply. Each zone's page has its uses, setbacks and the bylaw's sections.
Two lots both zoned P-1 under different bylaws can allow quite different things, and provincial law sets a floor of homes on most house zones in towns (how many homes can I build?). Site-specific exceptions, development permit areas and the ALR apply on top. Find the lot's own zone with the search above, then confirm with the local government before you buy or build.
Sources: each zone's bylaw, linked from its page, summarised in our words. Other councils' zones aren't here: the zoning we cover.