Development Potential in Langford

These tiers apply in Langford's Restricted Zones, the zones that as of December 2023 permitted only single family homes or duplexes and their suites. If your concept is not one of the listed forms, it is a rezoning conversation.

For the six unit tier, the bylaw requires the lot to be within 400 metres of a prescribed transit stop shown on Schedule AA. This is a specific mapped stop test, not a distance from any bus stop. Confirm the measurement and applicable zone with the City before you price six units. The free development potential assessment reads the lot and the rules that apply to it and tells you which tier your parcel falls in.

The 2024 council report described the parking change as applying within 400 metres of a prescribed stop. The current bylaw states the test in Table 1: residential uses on lots developed within a Restricted Zone shown on Schedule AA, with a lot area of 281 square metres or greater, require zero parking spaces per dwelling unit. Schedule AA maps the affected parcels in relation to prescribed transit stops, so check the map and the lot area rather than relying on a separate distance measurement. For Restricted Zone lots outside that mapped category, Table 1 requires one space per dwelling unit.

The bylaw lists suites separately at one space per dwelling unit, and the general suite regulations require one additional off street space for the exclusive use of a suite, not in tandem with a space for the principal dwelling. Confirm with the City how the mapped residential use exception applies alongside these separate suite requirements for your project.

The sixth unit near transit is subject to Langford's Amenity Contribution Policy. It is the only unit in the tiers the City can seek an amenity contribution for, and it is a cost line most people forget to carry. Development Cost Charges apply to every unit, and development permits and building permits are still required.

Bylaw 2183 removed the minimum lot size and the maximum floor area for secondary suites inside a single family home. A secondary suite must be completely contained within the home it belongs to.

There may be only one suite per lot unless the zone specifically permits more. The owner must occupy either the principal dwelling or the suite. The suite and the principal dwelling must stay a single real estate entity, and strata titling is not permitted.

Garden suites are permitted only on lots over 400 square metres, and garden and carriage suites need a lot at least 11 metres wide and 29 metres deep. A garden suite sits behind the rear building line of the home, with a gross floor area of no more than 65 square metres and a height of no more than 4.5 metres. Garden and carriage suites must be completely contained in a detached accessory building, are not permitted on lots within the City Centre designation, and cannot have a rooftop patio. Carriage suites need a lot over 1,000 square metres.

The Langford Exchange is a designated transit oriented area under provincial rules. Within 200 metres of it, the City cannot refuse a rezoning on density or height grounds for a proposal up to 3.5 FSR and 10 storeys. Between 200 and 400 metres, the figures are 2.5 FSR and 6 storeys. That density still takes a rezoning.

A lot inside a designated transit oriented area is governed by those rules rather than the small scale multi unit rules, and the two do not stack. If your lot is near the exchange, check which framework applies before anything else.

Zoning is only half the answer. The provincial policy manual states that existing section 219 covenants are not affected by the small scale multi unit housing legislation, and that a valid statutory building scheme registered on title limiting a property to one dwelling unit takes precedence over the density the zoning permits. Order a title search on the PID before you price density into an offer.

There is a full post on what a covenant or building scheme does to your density.