Too many illegal coach houses/garden suites/laneway houses? IB次元官网网址檒l tell you why: try legalizing one. ThatB次元官网网址檚 what IB次元官网网址檝e been up to for a couple of years now.

ThereB次元官网网址檚 all sorts of coach houses out there. Hundred and hundreds. Some, like mine, were purpose-built prior to SaanichB次元官网网址檚 decision to allow them. Nice places. Others are dirty firetraps. Anyone whoB次元官网网址檚 looked into the process to legalize a garden suite knows the routine.

Get a development permit, then a building permit. And a parade of expensive experts: architect, building inspectors, siding engineer, sewage engineer, lawyer, other consultants. At enormous expense.

If an existing garden suite conforms to the zoning, re: setbacks, height, lot coverage etc, then a simple building safety inspection should be enough. Check framing, egress, smoke detectors, wiring, plumbing, and thatB次元官网网址檚 it. Bada bing badda boom.

Saanich could quickly add hundreds of low-cost accommodations to the provincial targets, and save countless tenants the risk of being kicked out when the garden suite is B次元官网网址渄iscoveredB次元官网网址�. If the municipality would just get the stick out of its butt.

Jerry Donaldson

Saanich