RD-4: Two Family DADU Residential

What the zone allows

Homes allowed

Two homes: a duplex in one building, or a house and a detached accessory home (garden suite) of up to 65 m², which needs a covenant against subdividing or strata titling it and a housing agreement that the owner lives on the lot and the second home stays available to rent (s. 40.1(4)-(7)); the zone doesn't list a secondary suite, so whether a house can have one is unclear

Exceptions (1)

• On lots the Township's Schedule A.2 overlay map shows as small-scale multi-family housing lots, up to four homes in up to two buildings under the RSM-2 zone (three under RSM-1 on lots of 280 m² or less), unless the lot is also shown as a tsunami hazard lot

Listed in s. 30.10, 40.2, 40.3 of the bylaw.

Main uses

One house or one duplex, a garden suite with a house only, home occupation, boarding (up to two rooms), urban hens

Smallest lot for a subdivision

668 m², 18.3 m wide at the front building line, for a new fee simple lot (s. 40.1(2), (3))

Lot coverage

30%; accessory buildings and structures together 10% of the lot, and with the garden suite 25% of the rear yard; floor area up to 0.35 times the lot area for a house or a duplex on a lot of 800 m² or more, 0.4 for a duplex on a smaller lot (s. 40.1(8), (10))

Height limit

House or duplex 7.3 m; garden suite 4.2 m and no higher than the house; accessory buildings 3.6 m (s. 40.1(9))

Setbacks

House or duplex: front 7.5 m, rear 7.5 m, sides 1.5 m and 4.5 m together (3 m on one side without a rear lane, 3.6 m beside a street); garden suite behind the front of the house, 1.5 m from the sides (4.5 m together, 3.6 m beside a street) and the rear, 2.5 m from the house; accessory buildings behind the front of the house, 1.5 m from the side and rear, 2.5 m from the house and the garden suite (s. 40.1(11))

The zone is for a house or a duplex on its own lot, with the option of a garden suite where there is only a house (s. 40.1).

A garden suite is one storey with no basement, shares the house's services and has its own 20 m² of outdoor space, and needs a development permit (s. 30.7).

Whether a lot is on the small-scale multi-family housing overlay or a tsunami hazard lot is on the bylaw's Schedule A.2; ask the Township.

Short-term rental isn't a use this zone lists; ask the Township of Esquimalt before renting a home short term.

Site-specific exceptions listed in the bylaw by legal description can add or change uses for one property, and development permit areas, the ALR and building rules apply on top. Confirm with the Township of Esquimalt's development services department before you buy or build.

Source: Section 40.1 of Zoning Bylaw, 1992, No. 2050 (summarised in our words, checked 2026-10-05); zone map: Open Government Licence – Corporation of the Township of Esquimalt.