Richmond city council has voted in favour of limiting the sizes of homes built on properties protected under the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR). The decision comes after series of divisive public hearings conducted by the City.
In March, the Richmond News reported council was considering amending its bylaws to impose a maximum housing size on ALR properties after mega-homes – sometimes as large as over 20,000 square feet – cropped up across Richmond.
The new bylaw passed by a vote of 7-1 will limit the size of homes built on half-acre properties to 10,764 square feet. Farmhomes built on properties smaller than half an acre will be capped at 5,382 square feet.
Prior to the decision Richmond had no limitations to the size of homes on farm acreages. Most surrounding municipalities have long-standing limitations. Neighbouring Delta, for example, has a cap of 3,552 square feet on ALR homes smaller than 20 acres.
B.C. is the only province in Western Canada that does not impose province-wide restrictions on foreign ownership of farmland.
