Bylaws Pending Approval

What is Happening

On April 2, 2024, Council gave first reading to Bylaw 2023-36:  Palliser Lane Perpetual Affordable Housing DC District and scheduled a public hearing for May 7, 2024.

Register to speak at the public hearing: contact the municipal clerk at municipal.clerk@canmore.ca before noon on Monday, May 6, 2024. Non-registered participants will be given an opportunity to speak at the hearing if they are present in the council chamber. Presentations are limited to five minutes.

Provide written comment: written submissions are also welcome and are accepted whether or not a person attends the hearing. Submissions received by the municipal clerk at municipal.clerk@canmore.ca before 9 a.m. on Friday, May 3, 2024.

Watch the public hearing: Members of the public may attend in person or watch the hearing online are livestreamed and recorded at on YouTube. 

What You Need to Know

Canmore Community Housing, who owns the land at 100 Palliser Lane, has applied to redesignate the site to accommodate the development of affordable housing. This change fits with the Palliser Trail Area Structure Plan and is consistent with the existing land use for the area.

Bylaw 2023-36 proposes two amendments to the Land Use Bylaw:

1. Changing the zoning of 100 Palliser Lane (from DC-03(Z)2008 – Palliser Perpetually Affordable Housing Apartment DC District to a new direct control district – Palliser Lane Perpetually Affordable Housing DC District) to allow for affordable housing.
2. Removing the requirement for a minimum number of parking spaces for Perpetually Affordable Housing within the new DC District (Palliser Lane Perpetually Affordable Housing DC District).

To read the proposed bylaw, click here.

Background

100 and 200 Palliser Lane sites were designated to the existing DC-03(Z)2008 District in 2008 following the adoption of the Palliser Area Structure Plan (ASP) in 2007. 200 Palliser Lane was developed with 60 units across three buildings in 2008 in alignment with the Palliser ASP; however, nothing was developed on 100 Palliser Lane.

In November 2023, Council adopted the Palliser Trail Area Structure Plan which replaced the previous Palliser ASP. 100 Palliser Lane is now proposed to be redesignated to a new direct control district: the Palliser Lane Perpetually Affordable Housing DC District. This DC district was drafted in accordance with the policy direction of the current ASP. Once applied, it will provide a new land use and regulatory framework to ensure that future development of the property aligns with the new ASP. This includes allowing apartment-style perpetually affordable housing up to six storeys, ensuring high energy efficient buildings with near net zero emissions, people-focused design, reduced parking needs, and electric vehicle charging.

The proposed bylaw amendment change also removes minimum requirement for parking spaces for Perpetual Affordable Housing (Vital Housing) within the DC district. Section 5.1.11a) of the Palliser Trail Area Structure Plan directs the removal of minimum parking requirements to prevent the oversupply of parking.

This exemption will provide Canmore Community Housing with greater flexibility when determining the number of parking stalls to provide for their perpetually affordable housing developments. It will allow for ‘no parking’ housing options for people who choose to live vehicle free. This also increases the affordability of housing by eliminating the cost of providing parking stalls that would otherwise be included when requiring a minimum number of stalls per unit.