The City of Saint John invites residents to attend the Zoning Bylaw Reform Project Launch - Open House and Shape Your City

The City of Saint John is in the process of undertaking zoning bylaw reform and is inviting residents to provide feedback on the proposed changes at public open house events and the Shape Your City public engagement platform. This event provides an opportunity to visualize how these changes will support housing development and provides an opportunity to speak directly with City planners and staff about how these changes will benefit the community.

The Government of Canada launched the Housing Accelerator Fund in Spring 2023 to support local governments in creating transformational changes to boost housing supply. The City aims to achieve a Housing Supply Growth Target of 1,124 net new residential units over the next three years.

To ensure the success of this ambitious goal, the City has developed a comprehensive HAF Housing Action Plan including the creation of supportive policy and regulatory conditions for building new housing, providing more housing options, and diversifying construction types.  

To facilitate this the City is proposing the following changes to the Zoning By-law:

• Increase the as-of-right number of permitted units within fully serviced residential zones to four; 
• Increase the maximum number of dwelling units permitted within the residential intensification areas to six as appropriate;
• Increase density in proximity to post-secondary education institutions and primary corridors;
• Increase the maximum height allowance in the Mid-rise Residential zone (RM) to five to six storeys; and 
• Permit garden suites and secondary suites within all residential zones as appropriate.

The amendments accompany the City’s other affordable housing initiatives, including those outlined in the HAF agreement, to help address the housing needs of current and future residents.

The first of two open houses will take place on Wednesday September 25, 2024, at Lily Lake Pavilion in the upstairs ballroom from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.   All interested persons are invited to visit and meet with staff to share your thoughts or questions regarding the proposed zoning by-law changes.

Representatives from the City of Saint John will be available to answer questions related to the proposed changes at the open house. The public is invited to drop in anytime during the following period to attend the information session for this project:

Date: Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Place: Lily Lake Pavilion, Rockwood Park

Time: 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

An additional open house will be announced at a later date.

To learn more or to share you feedback at anytime regarding the proposed changes, please visit our Shape Your City Page.  

Here to help – For inquiries related to municipal services, contact the City of Saint John Customer Service Centre at (506) 658-4455, email service@saintjohn.ca or visit us in person on the Ground Floor of City Hall, 15 Market Square, Monday to Thursday (excluding holidays), 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.