RU7: Cottage Lot

What the zone allows

Homes allowed

No home: one tourist cabin of up to 150 m² (ss. 6.7.10, 6.7.11), which the bylaw defines as not for residential use, for owners or guests staying under 90 days in a row (Part 15)

Main uses

A wilderness recreational cabin, with or without running water

Smallest lot for a subdivision

1 ha for a new lot without community water and sewer; 700 m² for an existing lease lot; 18 m of frontage where there's road access

Lot coverage

35%

Height limit

2 storeys and 9 m; accessory buildings 5 m

Setbacks

1.5 m from lot lines; 4.5 m from a road, right of way, forest service road or other public access, and beside a road; 30 m from a watercourse; 15 m from the A1 zone

The zone is for wilderness recreational cabins (s. 6.7). The bylaw sets no smallest lot for a new lot with community water and sewer.

No accessory buildings or uses for livestock, houseboats, float camps or boats lived on (s. 3.17.8).

Short-term rental under s. 3.23 isn't listed here; the cabin itself is defined as short-term occupancy.

On an A1 or RU lot of 5,000 m² or more, up to 2 pieces of logging, industrial, commercial or construction equipment may be kept outside (under 150 m², 15 m from side and rear lines and from water), and up to 4 on 3.8 ha or more (under 300 m²). On a smaller lot: no commercial vehicle over 4,000 kg, at most two lighter ones, no RV over 12.2 m and no logging or construction equipment. At most four unlicensed vehicles outside on any lot (s. 3.14).

On a lot without a home, no outdoor storage yard and no parking of an RV or park model trailer (s. 3.13.1).

Accessory buildings come after the main building, never in the front or corner side setback; in a side or rear setback one over 2 m tall stays 1 m from the line; nobody lives in one unless it is an accessory home (s. 3.17).

Fences up to 2 m (s. 3.10.3); retaining walls up to 2.5 m and 2 m apart (s. 3.10.5).

Heights of houses and of accessory buildings up to two storeys are measured from the centre line of the road in front (on a flat lot or one sloping down from the road) or the average level of the rear lot line (on a lot sloping up), not from the ground at the building (Part 15). Barns, silos, grain bins, chimneys, antennas and similar are exempt from height limits, most of them up to 20 m (s. 3.9).

Floodplain (s. 3.28): floors for living, business or storing goods sit above 343.66 m (geodetic) beside Okanagan Lake, 3 m above the natural boundary of Mission Creek and 1.5 m above any other watercourse; fill to raise them stays 15 m from Okanagan Lake and other watercourses, 30 m from Mission Creek and 7.5 m from other lakes, swamps and ponds. Garages, carports, entrance foyers and most farm buildings are exempt; the RDCO may grant exemptions on a geotechnical report.

Only the uses the zone lists are allowed (s. 4.5.1). Licensed day cares for up to 8 and care homes for up to 10 people are outside the bylaw and allowed anywhere (note to s. 3.12).

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 RDCO's planning department before you buy or build.

Source: Section 6.7 of Regional District of Central Okanagan Zoning Bylaw No. 871 (summarised in our words, checked 2026-10-04); zone map: Open Government Licence – Regional District of Central Okanagan.