Hawkesbury zoning for small homes

Town of Hawkesbury, in the United Counties of Prescott and Russell. Population 10,194 (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 · Hawkesbury’s term: “secondary dwelling unit (in an ancillary structure)”

A secondary dwelling unit is permitted with any detached, semi-detached or row dwelling in a zone that permits those dwellings (R1 to R4), either in the principal building or in an ancillary structure but not both. It must not change the streetscape character, must share the principal dwelling's parking area and yards, and is not permitted in natural hazard areas or within 30 m of a watercourse. [1]

Number allowed: One secondary dwelling unit, located in the principal building or an ancillary structure but not both (s. 2.39(a)(ii); zone pages 3.1.4-3.1.5) [2]
Where allowed: Zones permitting detached, semi-detached or row dwellings (R1-R4 per Table 3.1); not in natural hazard areas such as floodplains or within a 30 m setback from a watercourse (s. 2.39(a), (f)) [2]
Parking: 1 space per secondary dwelling unit, tandem parking permitted; must share the principal dwelling's parking area and yards, and no new driveway except on corner lots (s. 2.30 parking table, 2.39(e)) [2]
Maximum height: Accessory buildings: 3.8 m in Residential Zones (s. 2.1) [2]
Maximum size: Accessory buildings: 100 m2 (1,076 sq ft) gross floor area in a residential zone; accessory uses may cover no more than 10% of the lot (s. 2.1) [2]
Setbacks: Accessory buildings at least 1.0 m from interior side and rear lot lines, 2 m from the main building, and not closer to the front or exterior side lot line than the zone setback (s. 2.1) [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. [3][4][5]

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 · Hawkesbury’s term: “dwelling - single detached”

The single detached dwelling provisions for the R1 and R2 zones set frontage, lot area, setbacks, coverage, landscaped area and height, but no minimum dwelling floor area. No minimum dwelling floor area was found in the by-law.

Minimum dwelling size: None set (s. 3.1.5 zone provisions) [2]
Minimum lot size: 420 m2 lot area and 15 m frontage for a single detached dwelling in R1 and R2 (s. 3.1.5) [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. [3][6][7][8][9][10][11]

Tiny home on wheels or park model

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

Not allowed · Hawkesbury’s term: “mobile home / recreational vehicle / trailer”

The definition of dwelling excludes mobile homes, motor homes and travel trailers, and no zone lists mobile homes among its permitted dwelling types. Human habitation is not permitted in any truck, bus, recreational vehicle or coach, whether or not on wheels, unless it meets the Fire Code and Ontario Building Code. The by-law has no garden suite or temporary-use provision for one.

Where allowed: Mobile homes are not among the dwelling types permitted in R1-R4 (Table 3.1); the dwelling definition excludes mobile homes, motor homes, caravans and travel trailers (s. 4.0) [2]
Approvals: Human habitation not permitted in any truck, bus, recreational vehicle, coach or streetcar body, whether or not mounted on wheels, unless it meets all Fire Code and Ontario Building Code requirements (s. 2.28) [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. [11][6][3][8][7]

Bunkie or sleeping cabin

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

Not allowed · Hawkesbury’s term: “accessory building”

The use of any accessory building for human habitation is not permitted unless it is specifically listed as a permitted use. The only such listing for residential lots is a secondary dwelling unit.

Approvals: Accessory buildings may not be used for human habitation except where specifically listed as a permitted use (s. 2.1) [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. [8][6][3][12]

Official links

Last confirmed October 2026.

Notes and caveats

The by-law is linked from the Town's Municipal Policies and By-laws page as 'Zoning By-law N° 20-2018'. The PDF (108 pages, dated April 30, 2018) has a broken text layer, so it was read by OCR; section and page references come from the OCR text. It is the as-passed text, not an office consolidation, and amendments since 2018 (e.g. site-specific amendments in Town notices) are not reflected. The Town's urban planning page shows a new Official Plan (Hawkesbury 2046) in draft. The by-law does not say whether the 3.8 m accessory height and 100 m2 accessory floor area limits apply to a secondary unit in an ancillary structure; they are listed as the general accessory building limits.

Sources

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