Alternative
development
standards
A guide for practitioners
Affordability and
Choice Today
www.actprogram.com
Overview of presentation
What are alternative development standards?
Benefits
Barriers and success strategies
Key themes:
Building lots
Streets and parking
Stormwater and servicing
Resources
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
What are alternative development standards?
Development standards
for residential planning,
design and construction
influence:
Alternative development
standards
Lot size and arrangement
Flexible and innovative
Street design
Support quality of life
Amount of parking
Reflect change and
replace outdated standards
Methods of managing
stormwater
Location of sewer, water
and utility lines
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
What are alternative development standards?
Different types
Different scales
Planning policies
and regulations
Individual lots
Engineering
standards
Subdivisions
Communities
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
Benefits
Increased
housing affordability
Increased
housing choice
✓
✓
Increased
quality of life
Reduced
municipal costs
Alternative
development
standards
✓
✓
Increased
marketability
Reduced
environmental footprint
✓
✓
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
Barriers and success strategies
Aversion
to risk
?
Piecemeal
application
Lack of understanding
and support
Alternative
development
standards
?
?
Complex & costly municipal
approval processes
Conflicting
financial perspectives
?
?
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
Key themes
City of Montreal
Province of New Brunswick
Alternative development standards
3. Stormwater and
servicing
City of Montreal
2. Streets and
parking
1. Building lots
Affordability and Choice Today
1. Building lots
Lot size
Alternative development standards
Reduced frontage,
area and setbacks
Reduced area of
rural lots
Affordability and Choice Today
1. Building lots
City of Surrey, B.C.
Detached homes – East Clayton District
Conventional
(RF zone)
Alternative
(RF-9 zone)
Frontage
15.0 m
9.0 m
Area
560 m2
250 m2
Front yard setback
7.5 m
2.0 – 3.5 m
Side yard setback
1.8 m
1.2 m
City of Surrey
Dimension
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
1. Building lots
Lot size
Reduced frontage,
area and setbacks
Lot configuration
Lot shapes and
arrangements
Alternative development standards
Reduced area of
rural lots
Affordability and Choice Today
1. Building lots
City of Guelph, Ont.
Actarea site, Pine Ridge East subdivision
Herringbone lot arrangements used space more efficiently
than conventional pie-shaped lots
L-shaped corner lots improved privacy and architectural potential
Alternative configurations allowed 23 lots, versus 19 using
conventional standards
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
1. Building lots
Town of Sackville, N.B.
New subdivision by-law
Permission by right for flag lots at the rear
of regular street-front lots, accessed by
a narrow right-of-way
Flag lots reduce the average length of water,
sewer and road infrastructure required for
each lot
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
1. Building lots
Lot size
Reduced frontage,
area and setbacks
Lot configuration
Lot shapes and
arrangements
Lot distribution
Clustered
development
Alternative development standards
Reduced area of
rural lots
Affordability and Choice Today
1. Building lots
Clustered development concept
Province of New Brunswick
Smaller lots let developers maintain yields, reduce infrastructure
obligations and preserve more natural land.
Water and septic systems may be in open areas rather than individual lots.
Adapted from Province of New Brunswick
Open areas can support stormwater management or
recreational facilities that improve quality of life.
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
Street layout
Alternative development standards
Grid-based
street layouts
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
Fused grid
concept
Canada Mortgage
and Housing
Corporation
Discontinuous street
network
at the block scale
Pathways and parks
create efficient walking
and cycling routes
Minimizes traffic volumes
on local streets
Preserves level of service
for traffic on major roads
Alternative development standards
Adapted from Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation
Traditional grid at the
neighbourhood and
district level
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
Street layout
Grid-based street
layouts
Right-of-way
dimensions
Reduced
road width
Alternative development standards
Reduced
boulevard width
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
City of Montreal, Que.
Bois Franc
Conventional
18.0 m (9.2 m paved)
Reduced for two-way streets
20.0 m (9.0 m paved)
boulevard width
for two-way streets
15.0 m (6.2 m paved)
for one-way streets
Adapted from City of Montreal
Local street right-of-way
Alternative
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
Street layout
Grid-based street
layouts
Right-of-way width
Reduced
road width
Streetscape design
Environmentally
sensitive design
Alternative development standards
Reduced
boulevard width
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
City of Vancouver, B.C.
Crown Street
reconstruction
Two-way road width reduced from
8.5 m to 6.7 m
• 3.5 m asphalt strip
• borders of 1.0 m concrete and
0.6 m structurally reinforced
grass
One-way lanes diverge around a
vegetated swale (see photo)
• 2.2 m asphalt strip
• 0.4 m concrete borders
City of Vancouver
Driving alignment meanders in
conventional right-of-way
Stormwater drains to vegetated
swales and detention ponds
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
Street layout
Grid-based street
layouts
Right-of-way width
Reduced
road width
Streetscape design
Environmentally
sensitive design
Parking for
single-family dwellings
Rear lanes
Alternative development standards
Reduced
boulevard width
Flexible parking
location
Unbundled
parking
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
Town of Banff, Alta.
Sundance Court
Banff Housing Corporation
Surface parking permitted for townhomes, rather than requiring garages
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
Street layout
Grid-based street
layouts
Right-of-way width
Reduced
road width
Streetscape design
Environmentally
sensitive design
Parking for
single-family dwellings
Rear lanes
Flexible parking
location
Unbundled
parking
Parking for multiplefamily and mixed-use
developments
Reduced parking
requirements
Shared parking
Travel options
Alternative development standards
Reduced
boulevard width
Affordability and Choice Today
2. Streets and parking
District of Saanich, B.C.
Short Street redevelopment
Parking requirements reduced by 32 spaces (21%)
Developer provided new residents with:
• a transit pass for two years
• membership in a carshare vehicle
• secure underground bicycle storage
District of Saanich
Residents share commercial parking spaces after 6:00 p.m.
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
Stormwater
management
Alternative development standards
Permeable
surfaces
Stormwater
collection and
detention
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
City of Victoria, B.C.
Dockside Green
Stormwater is handled onsite using a creek that runs through the development to
the ocean, slowing runoff and using plants to filter contaminants
Dockside Green
Creek is a valuable feature that creates greenspace and attracts wildlife
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
District of Saanich, B.C.
Willowbrook and Glanford Station
Wetland restoration and creek reconstruction were fundamental to development of two subdivisions
Creation of stormwater pond removed buildings from 200-year floodplain
Eliminating onsite stormwater treatment increased lot yield and profit
Aqua-Tex Scientific Consulting
Extra capital costs recovered through accelerated approvals and reduced carrying costs
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
City of Chilliwack, B.C.
Subdivision Development Control Bylaw
Developments must not increase flows into watercourses
Several subdivisions use infiltration galleries, rock pits and
detention ponds to manage up to ten-year storm events
Conventional stormwater infrastructure required to meet greater events
www.chilliwack.com
City could save $20 million (2003 dollars) over 20 years by
avoiding trunk sewer, pump station or canal upgrades
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
Stormwater
management
Permeable
surfaces
Stormwater
collection and
detention
Utilities and services
Shared trenches
Trench location
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
City of Ottawa, Ont.
Road Corridor Planning and Design Guidelines
Adapted from City of Ottawa
Collector streets with reduced rights-of-way may include a
shared utility trench adjacent to the sidewalk
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
Stormwater
management
Permeable
surfaces
Stormwater
collection and
detention
Utilities and services
Shared trenches
Trench location
Sewage treatment
Alternative
treatment
systems
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
3. Stormwater and servicing
Cap-Pelé, N.B.
Beaubassin Planning Commission
Consideration of non-septic sewage disposal systems for rural lots
(peat beds, community disposal fields and artificial ponds)
Approved systems permit smaller lot sizes (0.2 ha versus 0.4 ha) or
secondary buildings (e.g. workshop, office, in-law suite) on 0.4 ha lots
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today
Resources
Affordability and Choice Today (ACT)
www.actprogram.com
Canada Mortgage And Housing Corporation (CMHC)
www.cmhc.ca
Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA)
www.chba.ca
Canadian Housing and Renewal Association (CHRA)
www.chra-achru.ca
Green Municipal FundTM (GMF) of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM)
www.gmf.fcm.ca
Canadian Standards Association (CSA)
www.csa.ca/infrastructure
Alternative development standards
Affordability and Choice Today