Zoning bylaws have always regulated by permission. In other words, if a use is omitted from the bylaw, it is not permitted.
That has led to problems. In the ‘Home Occupation’ provisions of Bradford West Gwillimbury’s Zoning Bylaw, if a home business wasn’t listed – like outdoor swimming lessons – the business owner had to apply for a minor variance or zoning bylaw amendment.
The existing bylaw, passed in 2010, not only failed to envision some of the home occupations that residents of BWG would pursue, it didn’t take into account the proliferation of technology and online sales.
And it certainly didn’t predict the lockdowns of 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The town began its review of the Home Occupation provisions back in 2018, when a need for greater flexibility in allowed uses was identified. The town had been receiving requests for amendments, to permit at-home swimming lessons, catering, e-commerce and home offices.
COVID-19 has put additional pressure on the town to be more permissive, while remaining “respectful of residential neighbours.”
The Office of Community Planning is now seeking public input, for its ongoing review of the Home Occupation provisions.
Among the changes proposed:
. Permitting enclosed accessory buildings to be used for home occupations and storage – including the option of transforming a garage into a home office.
. Permitting part of any residential unit (including duplexes, townhomes and apartments) to be used for a home occupation. In the existing bylaw, home occupations are limited to detached, semi-detached and link homes.
. Allowing goods to be sold and picked up from a home business. Previously, businesses were required to deliver their products or services, creating a burden for the operators. There are limitations: purchasers need to co-ordinate a pick-up time, and retail displays are not allowed.
Planner Brandon Slopack provides additional clarity: "Homeowners are allowed to sell goods from home, if they produce the product, and changes will also allow a full range of goods beyond those produced in the home to be sold, providing the co-ordination of the sale takes place through technology, in order to limit the visitor/buyer exposure to the residential neighbourhood."
Buyers could stop buy to pick up the product and pay for it - addressing one of the key concerns identified in 2018.
As for out-and-out retail stores, he notes, "A retail store as defined by the Zoning By-law is not permitted, and never has been permitted."
. Allow goods to be sold in association with a home-based occupation, such as shampoo by a salon, or supplements by a fitness coach.
. Permit lessons, classes and teaching as home occupations, as well as home-based catering and medical practices. In-home medical practices would be limited to a single practitioner, and 2 examination rooms.
. Allow outdoor swimming lessons.
. Hours of operation would be extended. Originally proposed as 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., the new bylaw would permit home occupations to operate from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. – in keeping with the Town’s noise bylaw, and with other business hours in town.
The changes are designed to meet changing purchasing habits, give a boost to small, local businesses that “serve the community” – and come up with a ‘made-in-BWG’ solution to the challenges of working from home.
Slopack notes that the town is aware of 124 home occupation businesses in BWG, operating between 2016 and 2020, "though we anticipate that there are many more presently and more will emerge in the future."
Like most bylaws, enforcement of the rules in the past has been complaint-based.
"The town receives a handful of complaints every year, with respect to home-based businesses," Slopack says. "These are instances where a specific complaint is received and the town investigates the matter to determine compliance with applicable bylaws."
In these cases, he says, "The Enforcement Division strives to resolve matters directly with the owners/occupants."
The draft bylaw is posted on the Town of BWG website (click here).
Comments can be emailed to [email protected] or mailed to Brandon Slopack, Planner; Office of Community Planning; P.O. Box 419, Bradford ON L3Z 2A9.
Responses should be received by 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 19.
There are still limitations and restrictions. What remains unchanged is the basic principle that home occupations “should generally be undetectable to outside residents in order to preserve residential character” of the home and the neighbourhood.
Owners of home-based businesses must apply for and meet all necessary health and safety requirements and permits, and cannot create a nuisance, as established by the town’s bylaws and provincial legislation– i.e., no excessive dust, noise, debris, smoke, fumes, vibration, etc.
Square footage of the proposed business is limited, and scaled to the size of the dwelling - to 25 percent of the floor area, or 50 sq. m., whichever is lesser, in all Residential zones. Occupations must be conducted indoors within a dwelling unit or enclosed accessory building – except for outdoor swimming lessons – and no outside storage is allowed.
The operator of the home occupation must be a permanent resident of the dwelling, and not more than one non-resident employee is allowed. Only one home business is permitted per property.
Town staff plan to check, to ensure parking does not become a source of complaints.
And the following would remain banned as ‘home occupation’ uses: adult entertainment, escort services, paint shops, tattoo parlour, taxi service depot and dispatch, animal clinic, pet salon, fitness centre, restaurants, retail stores, and any facility offering storage, repair, maintenance and/or towing of mobile homes, motor vehicles or RVs.
Residents are encouraged to have their say. Staff hope to have the revised bylaw before Council during the first quarter of 2021.
