New house designs might not need the blessing of the city in the future.
During a recent Delta council discussion on a two-lot subdivision in North Delta, it was noted the city could end up eliminating form and character reviews from the application process.
Community planning director Marcy Sangret was asked about what’s next for the approval process now that applications for building designs in North Delta have been scrapped.
She said those reviews are no longer required for developments that are consistent with current zoning, bringing North Delta in line with South Delta where such reviews weren’t a requirement.
“However, we are still doing a design review where rezoning is being requested for new infill redevelopment and this applies across all communities in Delta,” Sangret said.
“It’s a requirement that the applicant provide a residential character study which looks at the houses that are in the immediate area and tries to incorporate some of the characteristics of the neighbourhood and retain some of those characteristics.”
Late last year, council approved a bylaw amendment put forward by newly elected Mayor George Harvie to eliminate the requirement for a development permit for form and character which only applied to new detached and duplex houses in North Delta.
That review requirement was introduced for North Delta in 2004 in response to community concerns regarding sizing, massing and house design compatibility of new homes with existing houses.
The issue was raised last year when council was considering zoning changes in North Delta. Property owners showed up in big numbers at city hall to complain about fairness and consistency because the regulation didn’t apply to Ladner and Tsawwassen.
A civic report last year also noted concern has been raised about the increased complexity in processing development permit applications, the increased timeframe required as well as additional fees.
The report stated that since the introduction of the requirement many building permits for new homes have been issued and much neighbourhood transformation has occurred. Some neighbourhoods now have more new dwellings than old.
In Ladner and Tsawwassen, a variety of housing forms, including older and newer homes, has resulted in an interesting mix of architectural styles that is not considered out of place, the report states.
