DRAFT ZONING BY-LAW

The City of Greater Sudbury is preparing a new Comprehensive Zoning By-law which will be replacing the eight existing Zoning By-laws, six of which are By-laws for areas in the former Region of Sudbury and two By-laws that cover lands in Townships that were amalgamated into the City in 2001. 

These Zoning By-laws which continue to apply to lands in the City are as follows:

  • By-law 95-500Z, City of Sudbury
  • By-law 83-300, Towns of Valley East and Onaping Falls
  • By-law 83-301, Town of Capreol
  • By-law 83-302, Town of Rayside Balfour
  • By-law 83-303, Town of Walden
  • By-law 83-304, Town of Nickel Centre
  • By-law 2001-24Z Townships of Cleland, Scadding, Parts of Dryden and Dill
  • By-law 2001-25Z Townships of Parkin, Aylmer, MacKelcan and Rathbun

Most of these existing Zoning By-laws were enacted in the 1980s.  Since the enactment of these Zoning By-laws, there have been substantial changes to land use planning in Ontario and in the form of development occurring in the City.  As a result, many provisions in the existing Zoning By-laws have become outdated and in other cases do not respond to present day development issues and activities.

The new Comprehensive Zoning By-law will provide consistent zoning regulations throughout the City and has been designed in a format that facilitates ease of use for staff, Council and the public.  The Comprehensive Zoning By-law will also implement the new Official Plan for the City which was adopted by Council in 2006. 

Work Completed to Date

City staff along with Meridian Planning Consultants has undertaken detailed reviews of several components of the Zoning By-law, including definitions, general provisions, permitted uses and zone standards, site specific exceptions new mapping and other policy related matters.

On January 12, 2010, City Planning Services staff and Meridian Planning Consultants Inc. provided a report and presentation to the City of Greater Sudbury Planning Committee.  The staff report and presentation are available below.

On April 20, 2010, City Planning Services staff provided a report to the City of Greater Sudbury Planning Committee on the comments that were submitted on the January 2010 draft zoning by-law. The staff report is available below.

Public Participation

Public participation is a key component of preparing the new Comprehensive Zoning By-law.  All citizens, community groups, businesses and landowners are encouraged to provide feedback on the draft Comprehensive Zoning By-law.  The public is invited to attend open house sessions on the draft Comprehensive Zoning By-law and meet with municipal representatives who will assist in explaining the draft by-law and answer questions. 

The open house sessions are scheduled as follows:

What is a Zoning By-law?

The primary purpose of a zoning by-law is to implement the policies of the Municipality's Official Plan.  The Official Plan contains general policies that affect the use of land throughout the Municipality.  These policies specify where certain land uses are permitted and, in some instances, specify what regulations should apply to the development of certain lands. 

The Official Plan is a general document that is not intended to regulate every aspect of the built-form on a private lot.  In the Province of Ontario, this is the role of the Zoning By-law.  The Zoning by-law establishes how land can be used, and the required standards.  These standards include lot size, setbacks from property lines, building heights, parking requirements, along with other matters.  Zoning By-laws provide a level of certainty as to how your property can be used and also how your neighbor can use their property.  Once an Official Plan is in effect, any zoning by-law passed by Council must conform to the Official Plan.

The statutory authority to zone land is granted by the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.P.13, as amended. 

How do I Determine What the Zoning is on a Property in the Draft Zoning By-Law?

Please note that the draft zone maps have no legal status, are only for the purpose of consultation and are subject to change.  The draft zone maps should not be used or relied upon as conveying any authority for the use of any lands, buildings or structures in the City of Greater Sudbury. 

First, you will need to know the Township that the property is located in as the zone maps are organized by Township.

Click on the Township that you are interested in viewing.  Most Townships are divided into two maps (north and south). 

Now, you will need to click on one of these maps in order to view the zoning map at 1:25,000 scale.  On the 1:25,000 scale maps there may also be more detailed inset maps at 1:5,000 scale which will also need to clicked on in order to be viewed.

The draft May 2010 zone mapping for all of the City of Greater Sudbury is currently available by clicking here (up to 2.6MB), and following the instructions above.

How do I Determine What the Zoning Permits?

After you have determined what the zoning is on a property in the draft zoning by-law, and you want to know how to use the draft zoning by-law to determine what is permitted and the regulations that apply in that zone, click here (0.1MB).

Please note that the text of the draft zoning by-law has no legal status, is only for the purpose of consultation and is subject to change.  The draft text should not be used or relied upon as conveying any authority for the use of any lands, buildings or structures in the City of Greater Sudbury.

A pdf version of the draft May 2010 text of Comprehensive Zoning By-law can be downloaded by clicking here (3.6MB). 

Paper copies are also available for reference use only at all Citizen Service Centres and City of Greater Sudbury public libraries.

 Illustrations: Part I (7MB) & Part II (7.6MB)
 Appendix 1 (0.2MB) Minimum Distance Separation Formulae
 Appendix 2 (0.1MB) Arterial Roads Classification
 Notice Public Open Houses (0.1MB)
 January 12, 2010 Planning Committee Report (1MB)
 April 20, 2010 Planning Committee Report (1.6MB)
 January 2010 Newsletter (0.3MB)
 Notice Public Meeting June 1, 2010 (0.1MB)

We welcome your comments on the draft Comprehensive Zoning By-law.  You may provide comments directly from this site by clicking here.  Alternatively to provide your comments in writing, please send your comments by June 1, 2010 to:

City of Greater Sudbury
Planning Services Division
Box 5000, Station A Sudbury, Ontario
P3A 5P3