Pipestone Flyer
You may own your lot and you may own your home but you don’t have 100% control of what you are allowed to do with that property. The City of Wetaskiwin Land Use By-law is a piece of legislation that has been created to regulate and control the use and development of all land and buildings within the City. This by-law can only be approved or amended by City Council. The by-law regulates what properties may be developed, and how they may be developed, through the development permit approval process.
A new garage, new fence, new deck, new business or new building all come under the regulations of the Land Use By-law. Any changes to types of uses, the mix of housing types and densities, the location of businesses, shops and services as well as specific requirements such as parking, fencing, landscaping and building height are all regulated by the By-law.
Some examples of things you should know were presented to City Council on July 23, 2012 by Charlene Malmas, Acting Development Manager.
Fence Permits
• You do require a permit for a fence.
• Residential fence permits are FREE.
• Residential fences may be constructed of wood, concrete, brick, manufactured plastic boards, or chain link fence materials.
• Barbed wire fencing is not allowed in any district except as parallel security wire on top of commercial and industrial chain link fencing or agricultural areas
• In residential districts fences must not be higher than 1.0 m beyond the front face of the principal building to the property line (front yard) and 1.8 m on side or rear yards.
Objects and Uses Prohibited in Residential Areas
• In residential areas, from April 1st to October 31st inclusive, recreational vehicles may be parked on a driveway to within 1.0 m of the interior edge of the municipal sidewalk or within 1.0m. of the curb if there is no sidewalk provided they do not obstruct the visibility of motorists in an adjacent private driveway, alley or intersection.
• You cannot have open unprotected excavations without advisory signage, safety fencing or onsite security
• From November 1st to March 31st inclusive it is prohibited to have a recreational vehicle located in the front yard in a residential property for longer than is reasonably necessary to load or unload such a vehicle, and not exceeding 72 hours.
Utilities to Sites
• Where an un-serviced site exists and municipal water, sanitary sewer andor storm sewer service mains are available, and a development application is made to construct or place a building on the site that requires service connections, the owner must enter into a development agreement with the City regarding the cost of installing the necessary services.
• Where an infill site existing that has been previously developed and the site was serviced with water andor sanitary sewer, and a development permit application has been made to construct a building on the site, depending on the age of the service, type of materials and condition of the services, the owner of the property may be required to install new services from the municipal mains at their cost. This includes road sub base and surface repair, curb and gutter repair, sidewalk repair and boulevard landscaping.
• Where a development permit application has been made to construct a building where the existing services do not meet the size and capacity of the proposed development, the owner must enter into an agreement to upgrade the necessary services and restore the surface and subsurface infrastructure.
Private Swimming Pools
• A private swimming pool is an artificial pool of water deeper than 600m at any point, used in conjunction with a single dwelling building.
• A development permit is required for a private swimming pool.
• Except for hot tubs, the entire area of an outdoor swimming pool shall be protected by a fence, building, wall or enclosure that can prevent access by unauthorized persons, and its height above ground level shall not be less than 1.8m.
• A private swimming pool shall be setback 1.5m away from any property line.
Before starting to develop or build, contact the City of Wetaskiwin Development Department for a more thorough review of what permits are required for development and services. Also, for any general inquiries call 780 361 4400.