Victoria is set to delegate what it calls minor variances to staff instead of them having to go through council.
Updates to the city’s Land Use Procedure Bylaw will delegate some variances related to off-street parking and the size, siting, and dimensions of a building, structure or use.
The latter variances must be small enough that they don’t negatively impact the livability or functionality of the site, or a nearby private or public property. Those impacts could include shadowing, privacy and natural features.
The applicant seeking such variances would also have to show that they explored all other solutions and will have to mitigate any issues stemming from their request. The bylaw update states an applicant would also have to prove to city staff that their variance would be unnoticeable by a typical user of the site in question.
Delegated variances would also have to align with other city guidelines that outline things like design and neighbourhood planning.
The bylaw changes will allow for minor parking variances so long as they aren’t for more than 20 stalls. The delegated allowances can also apply to bike parking as long as the variance doesn’t exceed six of those stalls.
In order to bypass council, the parking variances can’t adversely impact the neighbourhood by unduly contributing to curb or on‐street parking issues. The city may also require transportation demand management measures to be secured through legal agreements for someone to obtain a minor variance.
Council approved the first three readings of the bylaw changes on Sept. 28 and will have a procedural vote on Oct. 5 to adopt the new strategy.
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