Sables-Spanish Rivers zoning for small homes

Township of Sables-Spanish Rivers, a single-tier municipality. Population 3,237 (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 · Sables-Spanish Rivers’s term: “second residential unit / garden suite”

A second residential unit, which by definition can be in a detached building, is permitted as an accessory use to a single detached, semi-detached or row dwelling except in the Resource Recreation (RR) zone and where it cannot be adequately serviced by on-site systems. A portable garden suite requires a site-specific temporary use by-law. [1]

Where allowed: Permitted as an accessory use to a single detached, semi-detached, row or townhouse dwelling 'except in an RR Zone and in any other zone where the second residential unit cannot be adequately serviced with an individual on-site systems' (s.4.1.1.2) [1]
Maximum height: Accessory building: 6 m [19.6 ft.] in the R1, RR and Rural zones [1]
Setbacks: R1 accessory building: front 6 m, rear 1.2 m, interior side 1.2 m, exterior side 6 m (s.5.4.2) [1]
Maximum size: Accessory uses (excluding open pools) shall not cover more than 5% of the lot area (s.4.1.1.4) [1]
Temporary garden suite: Subject to a site-specific temporary use by-law under s.39 of the Planning Act: minimum lot area 450 m² [4,844 ft²], maximum net floor area 50 m² [538 ft²], maximum height 6 m [19.7 ft.] or average height of main buildings on subject and abutting lots (lesser), rear or interior side yard, minimum 3 m [9.8 ft.] from rear and side lot lines (s.4.13) [1]

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. [2][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 · Sables-Spanish Rivers’s term: “single detached dwelling / tiny house or small house”

No minimum dwelling floor area is set for single detached dwellings in the R1, Resource Recreation or Rural zones. The by-law defines a 'tiny house or small house' as 27.8 m² to 41.8 m² in gross floor area but does not list it separately in the zone permitted uses. [1]

Minimum dwelling size: None in R1, RR or Rural zone requirements; 'Dwelling – Tiny House or Small House' defined as gross floor area not less than 27.8 m² [300 ft²] and not more than 41.8 m² [450 ft²] [1]
Minimum lot size: R1: 700 m² with municipal water or sewer, 1 ha per dwelling unit on individual on-site systems (s.5.4.2); Rural: 1 ha per dwelling unit (s.5.18.2) [1]

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. [2][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.

Allowed with limits · Sables-Spanish Rivers’s term: “mobile home / park model trailer”

Mobile homes are permitted main dwellings in the Rural, Resource Recreation and Mobile Home Park zones, and park model trailer dwellings in the Rural zone, but not in the General Residential (R1) zone. Human habitation of a recreational vehicle is prohibited unless it meets the Fire and Building Codes; By-law 2023-13 allows only temporary habitation of up to two recreational vehicles. [1][11][12]

Where allowed: Mobile Home: permitted use in RR (s.5.6.1), MHP (s.5.7.1) and Rural (s.5.18.1) zones; Dwelling - Park Model Trailer and Park Model Trailer: Rural zone (s.5.18.1) [1]
Number allowed: By-law 2023-13: 'Temporary habitation in a recreational vehicle is permitted on a lot with a primary residential use in a residential zone or the Rural Zone or on a vacant lot in the Resource Recreation or Rural Zone', limited to two recreational vehicles per lot, with servicing to be addressed by the owner [11]
Temporary garden suite: Garden suite (portable, excludes recreational vehicles) requires a site-specific temporary use by-law under s.39 of the Planning Act (s.4.13) [1]
Approvals: Human habitation not permitted in any truck, bus, recreational vehicle, coach or streetcar body unless it meets the Fire Code and Ontario Building Code (s.4.24) [1]

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][2][7][6]

Bunkie or sleeping cabin

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

We haven’t researched Sables-Spanish Rivers’s by-law for this yet.

What applies everywhere in Ontario

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][13][2]

Permit threshold (Building Code Act): A 'building' includes any structure occupying more than 10 m², and any structure of 10 m² or less that contains plumbing. No one may build a building without a permit. (Building Code Act s. 1(1), definition of 'building'; s. 8(1)) [7]
15 m² shed exemption: A shed is exempt from a permit and from the Code if it is 15 m² or less in gross area, one storey, detached from any other structure, used only for storage ancillary to a principal building on the lot, and has no plumbing. Because of the storage-only condition, the exemption does not cover a bunkie used for sleeping. In effect April 29, 2022 (O. Reg. 451/22) and carried into the 2024 Code. (2024 Building Code, Div. C, Sentence 1.3.1.1.(6)) [5]
Plumbing: A structure of any size that contains plumbing is a 'building' and needs a permit. (Building Code Act s. 1(1), definition of 'building', clause (b)) [7]
Provincial accessory sleeping-structure rule: No provincial statute or regulation specifically regulates bunkies or accessory sleeping cabins. Whether they are allowed is up to the municipal zoning by-law. (Planning Act s. 34(1)) [2]

Official links

Last confirmed October 2026.

Notes and caveats

The consolidation date (Oct 7, 2024) comes from the file name and the Township's planning page; the document itself carries a 2020 cover date and page footers reading 'Zoning Bylaw 2003-15 as amended by Bylaw 2010-51 & 2020-41'. It reflects By-law 2023-40 (short-term rentals) but NOT By-law 2023-13 (recreational vehicles, passed May 10, 2023, read from the scanned PDF on the Township site), so other amendments may also be missing. Internal conflict: s.4.1.1.2 permits a second residential unit (defined to include one in a detached building) and zone tables list 'Additional Residential Unit' as an accessory use, but the zone tables still cap single detached lots at 1 dwelling unit 'except where a lot is rezoned to permit a Garden Suite'; no ARU definition or size limits found. Bunkie omitted: 'Sleep Cabin' is defined (accessory building not exceeding 37 m² [400 ft²], no cooking facilities, may contain sanitary facilities) but is not listed in any zone's permitted uses except a site-specific exception (RR-19, By-law 2003-12); s.4.1.1.2 bars human habitation of accessory buildings unless an accessory dwelling is listed, and the RR and Rural zones do list 'Accessory Dwelling' (undefined), so the general position could not be confirmed.

Sources

Not legal advice

Confirm with your municipality before you buy, build or move in.

Suggest a correction or source

Know of a by-law change, an exception or an official page we missed? Tell us. An editor checks every suggestion before the page changes.

Find help nearby

We don’t have a directory page for Sables-Spanish Rivers’s area yet. These cover all of Ontario.

All Ontario municipalities