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New Zoning By-law – What Changed?

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Poster of New Zoning By-law Updates - What is Changing?View the New Zoning By-law Updates - What is Changing? ​
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Introduction

This document provides an overview of Brampton’s proposed new Comprehensive Zoning By-law. It lists key changes and explains what they mean for residents. It starts with an overview of the entire By-law and then summarizes each chapter.

What is the New By-law?

This new By-law replaces existing, older zoning rules with a new, more modern zoning system. It sets the rules for how land and buildings can be used and developed in Brampton.

Key Changes and What They Mean for Residents

  • Simpler and Fewer Zones:
    The city is divided into clear zones such as Residential, Commercial, Mixed-Use, Employment, Institutional and Open Space. Each zone has specific rules about what can be built and where.
  • Mixed-Use Zones:
    New mixed-use zones encourage shops, offices and homes to be close together, especially near transit, to create walkable communities.
  • Major Transit Station Areas:
    Encourages vibrant, high-density, walkable places around transit stations with open spaces and attractive public areas by pre-designating height, density and use permissions.
  • More Housing Options:
    The By-law allows a wider variety of housing types, including semi-detached homes, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhouses, garden suites and apartments, while protecting neighbourhood character.
  • Protection for Existing Homes and Businesses:
    If your home or business was legal before this By-law, it is protected and can continue operating even if new rules are stricter.
  • Driveway and Parking Rules:
    The By-law updates driveway width and parking requirements. For example, driveways have maximum widths depending on lot size, and new developments near transit may require less car parking but more bicycle parking.
  • Home Occupations:
    You can run certain small businesses from your home, such as offices or studios, with limits on size, clients and employees to keep neighbourhoods peaceful.
  • Environmental Protection:
    Parks, natural areas and floodplains have special protections to preserve green space and safety.
  • Transition Rules:
    Projects with approved permits or applications before the By-law’s start date can continue under old rules for a limited time.

What Residents Should Do

  • Check Your Zone:
    Find your property’s zone on the City’s zoning map to understand what uses and rules apply.
  • Plan Ahead:
    If you want to build, renovate or change your property’s use, make sure your plans comply with the new By-law.
  • Ask Questions:
    Contact the Comprehensive Zoning By-law team if you’re unsure about how the new rules affect your property or development plans.

Why This Matters

The new By-law aims to improve Brampton’s zoning rules and make them easier to understand, while supporting growth, protecting neighbourhoods and encouraging sustainable development near transit. It balances the need for more housing and businesses with preserving the character and safety of our community.​​​​​

What It Does

Explains how the By-law works, who enforces it and how to interpret maps, symbols and rules.

What This Means for Residents

  • You must follow this By-law when building, renovating or changing how a property is used
  • Existing legal homes and businesses are protected
  • Some areas (like Downtown Brampton MTSAs) are temporarily excluded from the Comprehensive Zoning By-Law and will be added at later date
  • Projects with approved permits or applications before the By-law’s start date can continue under old rules for a limited time.

Why It Matters

This chapter is the “rulebook for reading the rulebook.” It’s what staff, planners and inspectors rely on when interpreting everything else.​​

What It Does

Defines terms used throughout the By-law (e.g., “additional residential unit,” “height,” “floor space index”). Definitions are the backbone of the Zoning By-Law and minimize ambiguity of zoning interpretations.

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Expanded and modernized definitions (e.g., fourplexes, stacked townhouses, live-work units)
  • More detailed measurement definitions (e.g. floor space index)

What This Means for Residents

  • Common words may have very specific legal meanings
  • Whether something is allowed may depend on how it’s defined here

Why It Matters

Misunderstanding a definition can mean assuming something is allowed when it isn’t.

What It Does

Sets rules that apply across all zones.

Key Topics Include

  • Accessory buildings (garages, sheds)
  • Yard encroachments (porches, balconies)
  • Floodplain and airport overlays
  • Waste and outdoor storage
  • Through lots and sight triangles
  • Uses allowed in all zones (e.g. utilities)
  • Home occupations

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Modernized rules for:
    • Accessory buildings
    • Rooftop equipment
    • Yard encroachments
    • Environmental overlays
  • More floor area allowed (up to 25%) for home occupations with clear rules to limit impact on neighbourhoods
  • Modernized safety and infrastructure setbacks

What This Means for Residents

  • Even if your zone allows a use, these rules still apply
  • Environmental and safety overlays can limit what you build
  • General provisions will apply in addition to the regulations set out in the applicable zone

Why It Matters

This chapter affects almost every property in the city.

What it Does

Establishes how many parking spaces are required and how they must be designed.

Includes Rules for

  • Residential and commercial parking minimums
  • Visitor parking requirements
  • Bicycle parking
  • Loading spaces for businesses
  • Parking structures
  • Parking area layouts (e.g. aisles and lanes)

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Reduced parking minimums in some areas based on how close a property is to public transit
  • Added bicycle parking requirements
  • Maximum parking requirements near transit

What This Means for Residents and Businesses

  • New developments may require less car parking, especially near transit
  • Bicycle parking is formally required in many cases

Why it matters

New developments may have less parking, especially near transit, but better bike facilities. More relaxed parking rates will be one less barrier to opening a new business or building housing.

What It Does

Regulates the neighborhoods and buildings where residents live.

Includes Zones Such As

  • Estate residential
  • Low-density (detached, semi-detached homes)
  • Medium density and townhouses
  • Mid-rise and high-rise apartments
  • Specific zones for mature neighbourhoods

Includes Rules for

  • The types of homes that can be built in a neighbourhood, such as detached houses, townhouses or apartments, and how tall / where they can be located on a property
  • Rules for the size and location of driveways, sheds, fences and other common structures
  • Special rules for mature neighbourhoods to help protect their unique character
  • Rules for adding extra units at a property, such as apartments in homes or garden suites in the backyard

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Fewer residential zones – simpler to understand the By-law
  • More housing types are clearly defined and allowed:
    • Larger garden suites
    • Fourplexes along streets with transit
    • Higher density housing by transit stations
    • ​Duplexes and triplexes in some zones
  • Smaller permitted driveways in older parts of the city
  • A greenfield mixed density zone that can be used for new developments

While there are changes, many of the rules have stayed the same to continue to protect community character. Examples include the existing rules for mature neighbourhoods and the special zoning rules that were put in place for neighbourhoods when they were first proposed.

What This Means for Residents

More housing options are allowed, but with clear controls to protect neighbourhood character.

Why It Matters

This chapter directly affects homeowners, renters and neighbourhood character through its use permission and setbacks, height limits and lot size requirements

What it does

Controls where shops, services, offices and commercial activities can locate.

Includes Zones Such As

  • Local Commercial
  • General Commercial
  • Highway Commercial
  • Office Commercial
  • Recreational Commercial

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Fewer and more streamlined commercial zones
  • Modernized list of permitted uses
  • Improved development standards

What This Means for Residents and Businesses

  • Clarifies what types of businesses can operate where
  • Separates neighbourhood-scale shops from auto-oriented uses
  • Sets rules for what commercial areas look like

Why It Matters:

Modernized commercial regulations allow the city to keep up with the contemporary retail environment. Expanded permissions means less barriers for new or expanding businesses.

What It Does

Encourages living, working and shopping in the same area, especially near transit.

Includes

  • Low-, mid- and high-rise mixed-use zones
  • Office-focused mixed-use zones
  • Rules for how tall buildings can be and where they can be placed on a property
  • Active frontage (commercial units) requirements along key streets

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Existing Zoning By-law has very little mixed-use zoning – primarily focused on the downtown
  • Adding the mixed-use zones is an important step in Brampton’s growth as a more urban place
  • Mixed-use zones are most commonly applied around transit stations and make it easier to develop in those areas

What This Means for Residents

  • More urban, mixed-use development especially around transit stations
  • More variety in housing choice
  • Mandatory ground-floor commercial uses in some areas

Why It Matters

This chapter is central to Brampton’s growth and intensification strategy. It helps create walkable communities.

What it Does:

Protects land for jobs and economic activity.

Includes:

  • General Employment
  • Prestige Employment

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Simplifies zoning structure – from eight zones with inconsistent permitted uses to two zones
  • More clarity on accessory uses

What This Means for Residents

  • Supports industrial, warehousing and office jobs
  • Removes barriers to opening or expanding businesses

Why it matters:

Helps protect employments lands and aligns with provincial directives

What it does:

Applies to schools, hospitals, places of worship and similar uses.

Includes

  • General Institutional
  • Major Institutional

What’s New in the Proposed Zoning By-law

  • More logical relationship between the two institutional zones

What This Means for Residents

  • These uses are grouped and regulated consistently
  • New uses and expansions are allowed but controlled

Why It Matters

Institutional uses are important public uses and these zones allow them with controls to manage potential impacts.

What It Does

Protects parks, green spaces and environmentally sensitive lands.

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • Rules and mapping have been updated

What This Means for Residents

  • Development is very limited in these zones
  • Focus is on conservation, recreation and public use
  • Floodplains and natural features are protected

Why It Matters

Safeguards Brampton’s green spaces and environmental systems.

What it does

Covers special-purpose lands that don’t fit elsewhere.

Includes

  • Agricultural
  • Utilities and Transportation
  • Future Development

What This Means for Residents

  • “Future Development” lands are held back until planning for them is complete
  • Agricultural lands are protected from urban uses

Why It Matters

Helps control long-term growth and infrastructure planning.

What It Does

Contains site-specific rules that override standard zoning, typically approved through a planning application.

What’s New in the Proposed By-law

  • All the site-exceptions included in the new By-law were carried forward from the old Zoning By-law
  • To be included each site-exception zone was reviewed to make sure it is still aligned with the policy goals in Brampton’s Official Plan. Any that did not, were not included in the new By-law and new zoning was applied.

What This Means for Residents

  • If your property has a “-###” suffix, special rules apply
  • ​Carrying forward most of the site-exception zones provides continuity in the rules for the many properties that have them

Why it matters

Exception zones can change what’s allowed on a specific property.

What It Does

Formally repeals old zoning By-laws and sets the effective date.

What This Means for Residents

Once in force, this By-law becomes the zoning reference for most of the city

Video #1 – Introduction to Comprehensive Zoning By-law Review

Video #2 – Key Themes of the New Comprehensive Zoning By-law

Project Timeline

Status: Past

Project Relaunch on Q1 2022

Status: Past

Council adoption of the new Official Plan.

Status: Past

Revised Draft released for comments.

Info Report to Planning and Development Committee tentatively Q1 2024.

Status: Past

First Preliminary Draft released for consultation and engagement.

Consultation begins in Q1 2024.

Status: Past

Release of Draft for further consultat​ion and engagement

Consultation begins in Q3 2024.

Status: Past

May 12, 2025 - Public Meeting and Report to Planning and Development Committee.

Status: Past

Recommendation Report to Planning and Development Committee​

Status: Past

Council Endorsement​

Status: Past

Implementation​

Major Transit Station Areas Review

Click here to learn more about Major Transit Station Areas Review

Brampton Plan

Click here to learn more about Brampton Plan

Main Street North Development Permit System (DPS)

Click here to learn more about Main Street North Development Permit System (DPS)

Housing Brampton

Click here to learn more about Housing Brampton

Brampton Mobility Plan

Click here to learn more about Brampton Mobility Plan

Questions or Comments?

CZBReview@brampton.ca