R10: Steep Slope Residential

What the zone allows

Homes allowed

Houses or a multi-family building (the zone doesn't list duplexes), at most 16 homes per hectare of the lot, not counting watercourse leave strips or park dedicated at subdivision; any lot big enough for the zone may have one house (ss. 7.2.1, 7.3.1, 7.3.2). A secondary suite only where the lot has one house (s. 7.2.3.1)

Main uses

A house, a multi-family building; a secondary suite, boarders, daycare, a home-based business, short-term rental

Smallest lot for a subdivision

1,200 m², 15 m wide, 30 m deep (ss. 7.4.1, 7.4.3)

Exceptions (2)

• 600 m² where the steep part of the lot is left out of the area
• 325 m², 10.5 m wide (10 m on a cul-de-sac, 12 m on a corner), 27.5 m deep (24 m with a lane) where the lot's average slope is 5% or less and the subdivision stays within 16 homes per hectare

Listed in s. 7.4.1, footnotes 1 and 2 of the bylaw.

Lot coverage

40%; floor area at most 0.55 times the lot area with one or two homes, 0.45 with three or more; on a lot with more than one home, 0.10 or 0.15 more for meeting Schedule D's Tier 1 or Tier 2 amenities (s. 7.3.1)

Height limit

9 m with a sloped roof (4 in 12 or steeper), 7 m with a flat one; perimeter walls of a house or duplex 7.32 m (s. 7.6.1)

Setbacks

Front 4.5 m, sides 1.5 m, flanking side 4.0 m, rear 7.5 m; a garage or carport door facing a street 6 m back for a house; 2.5 m more beside a major road not yet widened (ss. 7.5.1, 7.5.3, 7.5.4)

The zone is for land the City has found to be steep: house lots and clustered multi-family homes (s. 7.1).

Dedicating more than 5% of a subdivision as park earns 16 homes per hectare of the extra park, placed on lots named at subdivision (s. 7.3.3).

A geotechnical setback counts toward lot area here (s. 7.4.3); a watercourse leave strip doesn't (s. 7.4.2).

On a lot under 1,666.66 m², a house's height may instead be measured from the curb of the highest street beside it: 5.5 m with a sloped roof, 3 m with a flat one (s. 7.6.3).

A wall at the edge of the building is at most 7.32 m high (gables and dormers on up to a quarter of the wall excepted); on the rear and inside sides it may reach 9.14 m if set 10 m from the rear lot line and broken up (ss. 7.6.1, 7.6.6).

Secondary suites: one per home; a house with no other main use may have two, one of them in an accessory building (not in R2 or R3). A suite inside a house is at most 40% of the house's living space and 100 m². One in an accessory building only on an R5 or R14 lot, a corner, through or lane lot, or a lot of 500 m² or more; never on its own title, with 30 m² of private outdoor space, and no bigger than the zone lets an accessory building be, up to 100 m² (s. 6.15).

Boarders: at most two people in two sleeping rooms, inside a house (s. 7.2.3).

Short-term rental (stays under 30 days) only in the operator's own primary residence, the whole home or rooms; one per lot where the home has suites (s. 6.16).

Part 6 (general regulations: accessory buildings, watercourse setbacks, flood levels, fences, home businesses) also applies.

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 City of Nanaimo's planning and development department before you buy or build.

Source: Part 7 of City of Nanaimo Zoning Bylaw No. 4500 (summarised in our words, checked 2026-10-04); zone map: Open Government Licence – Nanaimo.