Agricultural Land Reserve Referrals

Much of the agricultural land in BC is within the Agricultural Land Reserve and is subject to additional regulations. The Provincial Agricultural Land Commission is the approving authority for Agricultural Land Reserve application and submits referrals to the CVRD for comment.

Board of Variance

The board of variance focuses primarily on hardship relating to matters such as siting, dimensions and size of buildings. The board may grant a variance if they find that compliance with the bylaw would cause undue hardship and have considered the following factors and are of the opinion that the variance does not:

• Result in inappropriate development of the site
• Adversely affect the natural environment
• Substantially affect the use and enjoyment of adjacent land
• Vary permitted uses and densities
• Defeat the intent of the bylaw

Development Permits

Development Permits may be required prior to obtaining a building permit or subdivision approval. To determine whether your project requires a development permit, please visit our web map.

Development Variance Permits

A Development Variance Permit (DVP) is a tool used by local governments to 'vary' or relax a regulation. While certain regulations such as a setback can be varied, keep in mind that use and/or density cannot be varied.

(note: a list will  appear below if a Notice of Proposed Development Variance Permit has been mailed to adjacent property owners. More information on the applications listed below may be found on the next Electoral Area Services Committee meeting agenda at the following link: https://cvrd.primegov.com/public/portal)

Rezoning 

A rezoning application changes how a property can be used or developed. The purpose of rezoning is to change land use regulations to allow development that aligns with CVRD Board priorities and is often used to secure development contributions to help provide public amenities.

 Subdivision Referrals

Subdivision is the process of altering legal property boundaries. It usually involves the dividing of a property into smaller lots but can also include the realignment of existing property lines or the consolidation of two or more lots into one. The BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure is the approving authority for Subdivision applications and submits referrals to CVRD for comment.  

Telecommunication Proposals

Local governments are referred applications for proposed towers and are given the opportunity to comment on the proposal. Ultimately, the role of the CVRD is to issue a statement of concurrence or non-concurrence to the proponent and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) . The statement considers the land-used compatibility of the antenna structure, the responses of the impacted residents and the proponent’s adherence to this protocol.

Temporary Use Permit

A temporary use permit (TUP) may be issued by a local government to allow a use not permitted by zoning, specify conditions of that temporary use, and allow and regulate the construction of buildings or structure for the temporary use.  A TUP may be issued for up to three years and can be renewed once. 

(note:  a list will appear below if a Notice of Proposed Temporary Use Permit has been mailed to adjacent property owners.)