A property in Oliver has received a development variance to convert a building into a carriage home, an early sign of things to come.
The owners of 1022 Fairview Road sought to decrease the minimum floor area required for a unit from 45 sqm (484 sqft) to 30 sqm (336 sqft) so that they could convert an already existing building into a living unit.
This sort of reduction in minimum floor area is a sign of things to come. The town, required to comply with upcoming legislation from the province, is focusing on ways to encourage smaller, more affordable units and this is one way of doing that.
Randy Houle, director of development services for Oliver explained that the town is already engaged in discussions around amending the bylaws to allow this exact change: to lower the minimum size from 45 to 30 sqm.
Houle further noted that if approved the proposed bylaw would not be adopted until around April or May, and the applicants for this property wish to move forward before that time.
Although Houle noted that the owners plan to use the carriage home as a vacation rental in the near term, the conversion creates a safe living space that could be occupied for longer-term residential use in the future.
The town is seeking these changes in an effort to allow more small-scale housing to bring the town’s bylaws in line with the incoming provincial legislation contained in Bills 35, 44, 46, and 47 to increase housing density across the province.
Smaller accessory dwellings will soon be easier to convert into carriage homes, and more units like this one will be converted.
