Rossland secondary suite and carriage house rules

Can I add a secondary suite or a carriage house?

Rossland, British ColumbiaChecked against official textSources read 2026-11-05

Short answer

In Rossland, the Zoning Bylaw allows a secondary suite (inside a house) or an accessory dwelling unit (a detached garden suite, coach house or laneway home) in several zones, including RR, R-1 and R-3. You need a building permit. One suite per dwelling unit, with a separate entrance, and no strata.

Key facts

Secondary suite allowed	Allowed in the RR, R-1, R-3 and R-GS zones, in C-2 (with a principal commercial use), in C-4, and in CD-1, CD-2, CD-3, CD-5 and CD-6, subject to s. 4.1.3. Not listed in R-DT, R-2, C-1, C-3, M-1 or P zones. One suite per dwelling unit; units must be side by side, not stacked.Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 4.1.3(b), (c); Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 8.1 (RR) 3(a); Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 8.3 (R-1) 3(a); 8.5 (R-3); 8.8 (R-GS); Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 9.2 (C-2) 2; 9.4 (C-4) 2 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 Official wording A Secondary Suite, shown in Figure 4-1, may be permitted on the same parcel as a Single Not more than one Secondary Suite shall be permitted within each Dwelling Unit. A Secondary Suite or an Accessory Dwelling Unit must have a separate entrance Secondary Suite in conjunction with a Principal Commercial Use d) Secondary Suites and Accessory Dwelling Units A Secondary Suite or an Accessory Dwelling Unit shall be permitted subject to the provisions of Section 4.1.3; A Secondary Suite shall be permitted subject to the provisions of Section 4.1.3. Secondary Suite in conjunction with a Principal Commercial Use Secondary Suites and Accessory Dwelling Units
Coach house or garden suite allowed	Yes. An accessory dwelling unit (garden suite, coach house or laneway home) is allowed in RR, R-1, R-3, R-GS, C-2 (with a principal commercial use), C-4, CD-1, CD-2, CD-3, CD-5 and CD-6, subject to s. 4.1.3. It must be fully above ground, no more than 6.0 m or 2 storeys (7.5 m or 2.5 storeys if built in a detached garage).Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, Definitions: Accessory Dwelling Unit; Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 4.1.3(d), (e), (f); Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 8.3 (R-1) 3(b) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 Official wording This may include a garden suite, coach house, or laneway home. An Accessory Dwelling Unit shall be permitted subject to the provisions of Section 4.1.3. An Accessory Dwelling Unit must be located fully above ground. An Accessory Dwelling Unit must not exceed a Height of 6.0 m or 2 Storeys, whichever is the Building Height may be increased to 7.5 m or 2.5 Storeys, whichever is less. An Accessory Dwelling Unit must be located fully above ground. An Accessory Dwelling Unit shall be permitted subject to the provisions of Section 4.1.3.
Limits	One secondary suite per dwelling unit, on the same lot as the principal residence, as one real estate entity (no strata), with a separate entrance. Zone caps on units per parcel apply: RR two; R-1 three (parcel 280 m² or less) or four. No short-term rental on a lot with a suite. No suite size or owner-occupancy rule found.Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 4.1.3(b), (g); Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, Definitions: Short-Term Rental - Residential · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 Official wording Not more than one Secondary Suite shall be permitted within each Dwelling Unit. must form part of a single real estate entity. No strata titling will A Secondary Suite or an Accessory Dwelling Unit must have a separate entrance Maximum number of Dwelling Units per Parcel: two (2), inclusive of all Principal Buildings and For Parcels equal to or less than 280 m2 in size, a maximum of three (3) Dwelling Units are permitted For Parcels greater than 280 m2 in size, a maximum of four (4) Dwelling Units are permitted Short term rental - Residential use is prohibited in conjunction with a Secondary Suite or an Accessory Dwelling Unit.
Parking	1 space per dwelling unit, and secondary suites and accessory dwelling units are listed in that class; a unit with 3 or more sleeping units needs 2 spaces.Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, Table 5-1 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 Official wording 1 space per Dwelling Unit 2 spaces per Dwelling Unit with 3 or more Sleeping Units Small-Scale Multi-Unit Housing; Secondary Suite; Accessory Dwelling Unit
Permits	A building permit is required for a new secondary suite. A development permit may also be required (for example in the wildfire interface zone, downtown, on a slope over 30%, or near a creek). New construction such as a carriage house needs an infrastructure servicing permit first.Building Permits & Inspections, Do you need a Building Permit?; Building Permits & Inspections, What should I check before applying?; CloudPermit Information, How to Submit an Application; Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 4.1.3(a) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 Official wording Construction of any new occupancy building, accessory building or secondary suite A Development Permit - this is for any builds in the wildfire interface zone, downtown, the gateway area, if the build is in a multi-unit, on a slope over 30% or near a creek or riparian area etc. All new construction (eg: new single residential dwelling, multi-family dwelling, carriage house) must apply for an Infrastructure Servicing Permit first. the owner shall comply with all applicable provisions of the current British Columbia Building Code (BCBC) at the time of application.
Bylaw	City of Rossland Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026 (s. 4.1.3 and the zone sections); Building Bylaw No. 2716, 2019Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026, s. 1 (short title); Building Bylaw No. 2716, 2019, s. 1.1 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 Official wording This Bylaw shall be cited as the "City of Rossland Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026." This bylaw may be cited as "Building Bylaw No. 2716, 2019".

How it works

Under Rossland's Zoning Bylaw 2864 (s. 4.1.3), a secondary suite (a self-contained dwelling unit within a building) is allowed in the RR, R-1, R-3 and R-GS zones, in C-2 (with a principal commercial use), in C-4, and in CD-1, CD-2, CD-3, CD-5 and CD-6. The bylaw does not list suites in R-DT, R-2, C-1, C-3, M-1 or the P zones.

A detached accessory dwelling unit (garden suite, coach house or laneway home) is allowed in the same zones. It must be fully above ground and no more than 6.0 m or 2 storeys high (7.5 m or 2.5 storeys if built in a detached garage).

Steps

Check your zone. See the zoning-lookup answer.
Confirm with Planning and Development (250-362-2329) whether you also need a development permit, for example in the wildfire interface zone, downtown, on a slope over 30%, or near a creek.
For new construction such as a carriage house, get an infrastructure servicing permit first.
Apply for a building permit through CloudPermit.

Good to know

Limits: one secondary suite per dwelling unit, on the same lot as the principal residence, as one real estate entity (no strata), with a separate entrance. Units must be side by side, not stacked.
Zone caps on units per parcel also apply: RR allows two dwelling units; R-1 allows three on a parcel of 280 m² or less, or four.
Parking: 1 space per dwelling unit. Secondary suites and accessory dwelling units are in that class. A unit with 3 or more sleeping units needs 2 spaces.
No short-term rental is allowed on a lot with a suite. See the short-term-rental answer.
The bylaw and City pages state no suite size limit or owner-occupancy rule. Ask Planning to confirm.

Official forms and pages

The same question in other places

Warfield · Trail · Montrose · Fruitvale · Castlegar · Salmo

Secondary suite and carriage house rules in British Columbia, by municipality →

Sources

Zoning Bylaw No. 2864, 2026 (PDF), City of Rossland (read 2026-11-05)
Building Permits & Inspections, City of Rossland (read 2026-11-05)
CloudPermit Information, City of Rossland (read 2026-11-05)
Building Bylaw No. 2716, 2019 (PDF), City of Rossland (read 2026-11-05)
Zoning & Rezoning, City of Rossland (read 2026-11-05)

Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 6 of 6 facts was matched to the official text. How answers are checked.