Saanich to limit size of homes on farmland to 4,300 square feet
One of the district’s goals is to slow sharp increases in the cost of agricultural land, which makes it difficult to acquire land for farming
https://www.timescol...re-feet-9638733
There are 2,665 properties in Saanich zoned for agricultural use, including 533 in the Agricultural Land Reserve.
Currently, homes and other structures are permitted to cover just 40 per cent of an agricultural-zoned property that is smaller than 2,000 square metres, while there is no coverage limit for parcels with a lot area greater than 2,000 square metres.
By comparison, in the rest of Saanich, depending on lot size, the maximum size of a single-family home varies from 261 square metres (2,800 square feet) to 1,000 square metres (10,764 square feet).
_______
Mayor Dean Murdock said the rationale for reducing the maximum house size on farm properties is to limit the potential for those properties to be lost forever to farming.
“People can continue to enjoy [the property] for their personal use. But limiting that house size ensures that it doesn’t lose the long-term potential for food production,” he said.
Edited by Victoria Watcher, 10 October 2024 - 04:01 AM.