The City has five zoning bylaws covering various portions of the municipality. These bylaws were prepared in the 1970s and 1990s, before amalgamation in 1998. 

The City is in the process of preparing a new City-wide Zoning Bylaw to consolidate, update and replace the separate, outdated zoning bylaws. The new Zoning Bylaw will provide one comprehensive regulatory framework for land use planning and development in the City.  This framework will support the realization of the vision for growth established within the City's Official Plan.

What is a zoning bylaw?

A zoning bylaw is a legal document that is passed under Section 34 of the Planning Act.

This allows municipalities to control:

• how land or buildings are used
• the type of building that can be constructed
• where buildings can be located
• how tall a building can be
• how many residential units may be constructed
• how small or large a property may be
• the number of off-street parking or bicycle parking spaces
• and other features related to the use of land

A zoning bylaw is a separate document from the Official Plan. It is an implementation tool that will put the Official Plan's general policies into specific requirements that can be measured. The new City-wide Zoning Bylaw must conform with the policies of the Official Plan.

Check out the City's Official Plan.