Laneway house

A laneway house is a form of detached secondary suites in Canada built into pre-existing lots, usually in the backyard and opening onto the back lane.

[1] Laneway houses are found in densely populated areas in Canadian cities, including Edmonton, Toronto, and Vancouver.

[vague] During the 19th century, back lanes were used by Toronto residents to house accessory buildings, including garages, storage units and/or stables.

[8] In 2018, the municipal government of Toronto approved a zoning amendment by-law to permit the development of laneway suites on all properties that has a residential designation.

[3][9] The amendment was a response to growing concern around affordable housing, and as an effort to promote "gentle densification" by tapping into roughly 2400 publicly owned laneways spread across the city.

[16] Typical regulations require that the laneway home is built in the back half of a traditional lot in the space that is normally reserved for a garage.

BC Hydro Power Smart joined Simon Fraser University and the City of Vancouver in championing the project.

[23] The July 2013 rule update was aimed at making it easier to build one-storey laneway houses, and to address concerns about parking and the use of garages.