The building of carriage houses and secondary
suites are up for discussion.
A town hall meeting to discuss the two different
issues is expected to occur sometime in the first
quarter of 2016.
The issue of building alternative dwellings was
recently raised at the village office when a resident
inquired about building a lane way house on their
property. A lane way house is a form of housing
built on pre-existing lots usually located in a backyard
or onto back lane.
Current zoning does not allow for a lane way
house to be built on that specific property as it is
zoned single family residential.
But after reviewing zoning and permitted uses
staff decided to seek direction from council about
further investigating other alternative housing
options.
Staff recommended not to uphold current permitted
uses and not allow lane way houses as there is
a general absence of lane ways in residential zones.
But did note that the introduction of carriage
houses would largely cater to any demand for such
housing, the report stated.
Currently carriage houses, which are generally
developed above a garage, are not permitted under
zoning bylaws anywhere in Keremeos.
Secondary suites are allowed in agricultural and
country residential zones.
Christopher Garrish contract planner for the village
of Keremeos explained the two housing options
could be used in a broader scale in the village and
offer effective ways to address affordable and rental
housing objectives within a community.
“Secondary suites and carriage houses are a way
to increase density,” he said.
Temporary Use Permits will also be discussed at
the town hall meeting.
Temporary Use Permits are a flexible alternative
to rezoning as they can be used to allow interim uses
on a probationary period allowing the village and
the surrounding neighbourhood an opportunity to
evaluate the impacts of the use on the surrounding
properties.
The Review will provide more details about the
upcoming town hall as they become available.