Zoning for large-lot land in Langford is getting a name change to quash frequent confusion when it comes to rezoning requests.
Langford’s planning committee gave the OK to relabel the agricultural 1(AG1) zone as rural residential 2 (RR2). The zones have the same characteristics, such as 10 acre minimum lot sizes, with one residential building per lot.
Langford wants to differentiate clearly between agricultural reserve land (ALR) and AG1 land that isn’t within the ALR. The City has received a number of AG1 rezoning requests to allow residential development, particularly in the Happy Valley area.
Langford has 92 properties summing to 338 acres of land within the ALR. Where Langford can rezone AG1 land, only the provincial Agricultural Land Commission can approve removal of land from the ALR.
“Staff gets lots of questions about this,” said Coun. Denise Blackwell, the planning committee chair. “When it’s zoned agricultural one (AG1), people think it means ALR land. We are just relabeling the zone.”
“This is to reduce confusion around a number of projects,” said Langford planner Matthew Baldwin. “There are a number of properties zoned AG1 but not in the ALR.”