Alnwick/Haldimand zoning for small homes

Township of Alnwick/Haldimand, in the County of Northumberland. Population 7,473 (2021 census).

Backyard suite

A separate home in the yard of a house: garden suite, laneway suite or coach house, including prefab, modular or container units used this way.

Allowed with limits · Alnwick/Haldimand’s term: “secondary dwelling unit (in a detached ancillary building) / coach house”

A secondary dwelling unit may be placed in a building accessory to a single detached, semi-detached or row dwelling in the RU, RR, HR and SR zones, but only on lots of at least 0.4 ha with frontage on a year-round maintained road. It is not permitted in an accessory structure within the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan area. Ontario's Planning Act (s. 35.1) overrides zoning provisions that would prohibit one unit in a building ancillary to a house on serviced urban land. [1]

Where allowed: Zones listing a secondary dwelling (RU, RR, HR, SR); not in an accessory structure within the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan area (s. 4.30.1, 4.30.2 h); not in a floodplain or on a private or unmaintained road (s. 4.30.1 j) [2]
Minimum lot size: 0.4 ha (s. 4.30.1 g) [2]
Maximum size: 50% of the gross floor area of the primary dwelling, or 50 m² where the principal dwelling has a footprint of 100 m² or less (s. 4.30.1 k) [2]
Maximum height: 4.5 m; up to 7 m subject to the zone's minimum yards (s. 4.30.1 k) [2]
Setbacks: Interior side or rear yard (front yard also allowed in RR, RU, A zones and on waterfront lots); 1.2 m interior side and rear, or the zone's yards in RR, RU and A; maximum 40% coverage of the yard it occupies (s. 4.30.1 k) [2]
Separation from house: 1.5 m from the primary dwelling (s. 4.30.1 k) [2]
Number allowed: Up to two secondary units per lot: one in the dwelling and one in an accessory building; not permitted where a garden suite exists (s. 4.30.1 a, d) [2]
Parking: One additional space per secondary unit; tandem parking permitted (s. 4.30.1 e) [2]
Servicing: Municipal water where available; sewage system sized and approved by the County of Northumberland; frontage on a year-round maintained road (s. 4.30.1 f, h, i) [2]

Ontario-wide rule

Ontario law stops municipalities from banning one residential unit in a building ancillary to a detached house, semi-detached house or rowhouse on a parcel of urban residential land, as long as the lot has no more than three units in total. Municipalities still set most other zoning rules, but provincial law limits parking requirements, minimum unit size, lot coverage and separation distances. These units are also exempt from development charges and parkland dedication. [1][3][4]

Tiny home on a foundation

A small house as the main home on its own lot. The key rule is any minimum dwelling size.

Allowed · Alnwick/Haldimand’s term: “single detached dwelling”

The RU, RR, HR and SR zone regulations for single detached dwellings set lot area, yards, height and coverage but no minimum dwelling floor area; minimums of about 74 m² appear only in some site-specific exception zones.

Minimum dwelling size: None in the general RU, RR, HR or SR zone regulations (s. 5.2, 7.2, 8.2, 9.2); some site-specific exceptions set 74.3 m² [2]
Minimum lot size: RU 5 ha; RR 0.4 ha; HR 4,000 m²; SR 0.4 ha (s. 5.2.1, 7.2.1, 8.2.1, 9.2.1) [2]

Ontario-wide rule

Ontario law sets no minimum total size for a house that is the main dwelling. The Building Code sets minimum room areas, so the smallest compliant dwelling is roughly 17.5 m² by the Province's own estimate. Municipalities may still set minimum floor areas for main dwellings in their zoning by-laws. The provincial ban on minimum sizes covers only additional residential units. [1][5][6][7][8][9][10]

Tiny home on wheels or park model

Living full-time in a tiny home on wheels or a park model home.

Not allowed · Alnwick/Haldimand’s term: “mobile home / tourist trailer”

Mobile homes, mobile home sites and mobile home parks are prohibited in every zone except as specifically provided, as is the use of tents and trailers for permanent human habitation; no zone provides for a mobile home park, and permissions exist only in individual site-specific exceptions. A portable garden suite may be allowed through a site-specific temporary zoning by-law in the RR, RU and A zones.

Temporary garden suite: Permitted only by a site-specific temporary zoning by-law under ss. 39 and 39.1 of the Planning Act, in the RR, RU and A zones; maximum 80 m² (825 ft²), 5.0 m and one storey, rear or interior side yard, one per lot, plus one parking space (s. 4.14) [2]
Where allowed: Only on individual properties with site-specific exceptions (e.g. RR-32 allows one mobile home in addition to the dwelling) [2]
Approvals: Prohibited in any zone except as specifically provided: any mobile home or mobile home site or park, and tents and trailers for permanent habitation (s. 4.28 c, d); a dwelling excludes tourist trailers, park model trailers and mobile homes (s. 3) [2]

Ontario-wide rule

Ontario has no single rule for living full-time in a tiny home on wheels. A unit on wheels can count as a 'building' that needs a permit and must meet the Building Code once it stays in one place, is hooked up to services or is anchored. Park model trailers are recognized only as seasonal recreational buildings. Municipalities may allow a portable garden suite under a temporary-use by-law for up to 20 years, with extensions of up to 3 years each. [10][5][1][7][6]

Bunkie or sleeping cabin

A small sleeping building with no kitchen, usually beside a cottage or house.

Not allowed · Alnwick/Haldimand’s term: “private cabin”

The by-law defines a private cabin (a detached accessory sleeping building with no cooking facilities), but no zone or general provision permits one, and accessory uses exclude any building used for human habitation unless specifically permitted.

Kitchen: A private cabin, as defined, may have sanitary facilities but no cooking facilities (s. 3) [2]
Approvals: Accessory uses do not include any building used for human habitation except as specifically permitted (s. 4.2.1 b); 'Cabin, Private' is defined in s. 3 but not listed as a permitted use [2]

Ontario-wide rule

Ontario law has no rule written specifically for bunkies or sleeping cabins. Whether one needs a building permit depends on the Building Code Act's definition of 'building' and the Code's shed exemption. That exemption covers only storage-use sheds, so it does not cover a structure used for sleeping. Municipal zoning rules for accessory buildings still apply. [7][5][1][11]

Official links

Last confirmed October 2026.

Notes and caveats

The posted PDF (cover dated November 28, 2019; file last modified November 2020) states no consolidation date. It appears to include some 2020 site-specific exceptions but not later amendments. General amendment BL 13-2024 (scanned, read as images) amends the definitions, adds short-term rentals and unserviced nature retreats (RU and A zones, minimum 2 ha, not for permanent occupation), and refers to a s. 4.44 that is not in the posted PDF, so other unconsolidated amendments may exist. BL 13-2024 does not change secondary dwellings, garden suites, mobile homes or cabins. The OP and Zoning By-law Review is at the RFP stage (Sept 2026). The secondary dwelling rules in the posted text (0.4 ha minimum lot) may predate the 2022 Planning Act changes. No ARU guide was found.

Sources

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