Maple Ridge has put a hold on an extensive review, ongoing since 2016, aimed at loosening regulations for building detached garden suites. Council decided at its Jan. 14 workshop that it wants more information about how current suites are being received and wants to review the size and form of such housing.
The decision suspended the current second phase of the review that invited people to submit building pilot projects based on three possible variations of garden suites within the urban areas of Maple Ridge.
Those included building a garden suite that’s as small as 219 sq. feet., instead of a minimum of 398 sq. feet; allowing a larger suite to occupy up to 15 per cent of a lot, instead of only 10 per cent; and allowing a garden suite on a property where there’s also a secondary suite in the main house.
So far, no one has inquired about building a small suite – while three-quarters of the 50 people who inquired, wanted to build a larger suite, said a staff report. That’s likely because it’s more efficient to build a larger suite, given the input and fixed costs for a project.
The city had received proposals from five property owners for pilot garden suites, two in Hammond, one in east Haney and two others in the River Road area.
Three property owners are proposing garden suites that occupy 15 per cent of a lot, while three are proposing that their garden suites be built above garages, while none of the properties have access to the lane way. Currently, garden suites on the second storey of a garage are only allowed if there is laneway access.
However, all of those projects are on hold until the new council tours existing garden suites and visits two more suites that will be built this fall under loosened regulations.
Mayor Michael Morden said council wants to create as many secondary options as possible for affordable housing. “And we’re looking for creative ways in which to do that.” But creative might not mean large or inappropriate, he added.
He said there’s far more interest in secondary suites which are cheaper to install than garden suites.
Coun. Gordy Robson suggested that council tour the locations of garden suites so that new councillors could see the garden suites that are already in place.
Detached garden suites are mini homes that are built on to existing lots to offer another form of more affordable housing and have been allowed in Maple Ridge since 2008, but so far, only 48 such suites have been built. Such suites help out homeowners with mortgage costs or give aging relatives a place to live.
To entice more homeowners to build them, staff have been reviewing variations of garden suites, and inviting pilot projects, with the possibility of eventually relaxing bylaws around such structures.
Planner Lisa Zosiak said that so far, no complaints have come into city hall about new garden suites.
