RS-1 zone in New Westminster: Single Detached Residential Districts

New Westminster, British ColumbiaDraft, not yet reviewedBylaw read 2026-11-07

In short

Single detached dwellings, secondary suites, and laneway or carriage houses in residential neighbourhoods.

Zone rules

Purpose	Single detached dwellings, secondary suites, and laneway or carriage houses in residential neighbourhoods.
Main uses	Single Detached Dwellings Accommodation for youth in foster care and transitioning from foster care Public utilities Women’s transition houses
Also allowed (secondary uses)	Uses accessory to any permitted principal use Detached accessory dwelling units Home based business Secondary suites Keeping of up to two lodgers or boarders or four foster children in a dwelling unit, or up to eight child care children on a site
Minimum lot area	557.40 m² (6,000 square feet)
Minimum lot width	Frontage of not less than 10% of the site perimeter
Maximum lot coverage	35%
Maximum density	One principal dwelling unit per site, plus a secondary suite and one detached accessory dwelling unit; floor space ratio of the principal building not more than 0.5
Maximum height	7.62 m (25 feet); 8.84 m (29 feet) for a principal building meeting Energy Step Code Step 5 or a Passive House; peak height 10.67 m (35 ft) from height datum
Maximum height, accessory buildings	Detached accessory dwelling unit building: 7 m (22.97 feet) from the base height plane. Other detached accessory buildings: one storey, 4.57 m (15 feet) for a peaked roof, 3.6 m (12 feet) for a roof pitch of 4:12 or less
Front setback	5.79 m (19 feet), 20% of the depth of the site, or the average front setback of existing principal buildings on either side, whichever is less
Rear setback	7.62 m (25 feet) or 20% of the depth of the site, whichever is less
Interior side setback	Lots with frontage over 12.19 m (40 feet): 10% of lot width on each side, or 1.52 m (5 ft), whichever is less. Lots with frontage of 12.19 m (40 ft) or less: at least 1.22 m (4 ft)
Accessory building setbacks	Detached accessory buildings without a dwelling unit: not in the required front yard; 1.52 m (5 feet) from any rear or side site line bounded by a street; swimming pools 1.52 m (5 feet) from side and rear site lines; 4.57 m (15 feet) from the corner at a street and lane; garage or carport 6.71 m (22 feet) less lane width from the lane
Other rules	Detached accessory area is limited to 10% of the site area A detached accessory dwelling unit building may not exceed 89 m² (958 square feet) of detached accessory area Floor space ratio may be increased by 0.01, 0.03 or 0.05 for Energy Step Code Step 3, 4 or 5 (or Passive House) Attached accessory structures may not exceed 10% of the site area

Source: Zoning Bylaw No. 6680, 2001 (consolidated as of June 8, 2026), s. 310 (read 2026-11-07)

Rules in the bylaw's general sections (parking, fences, suites, home businesses) also apply, and a lot can have site-specific rules. The City publishes the complete bylaw as a single PDF, consolidated as of June 8, 2026; it also publishes each part separately. The saved text includes the list of amendments and appendices. Zone pages are taken from the bylaw text by a research agent and have not yet been reviewed by a person: confirm with the bylaw before you rely on them. How answers are checked.

This zone as Markdown · JSON · all New Westminster zones · Report an error