Perth County embarks on three-year comprehensive zoning bylaw review

By Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Following the recent adoption of its new official plan, Perth County is now undertaking a review of comprehensive zoning bylaws for North Perth, West Perth, Perth South and Perth East – a process that could take upwards of three years to complete.

A comprehensive zoning bylaw is a legal document that regulates land use and development within a municipality, ensuring land is used in a manner consistent with the community's goals and policies.

As all four lower-tier municipalities’ comprehensive zoning bylaws have not been reviewed or updated in more than 25 years, this review is meant to bring each of them into compliance with the county’s new official plan, bring them into alignment with new provisions in Ontario’s Planning Act, ensure they are consistent with the Provincial Planning Statement and have them be reflective of current zoning trends and best practices.

“The project will be undertaken in five phases,” said Moira Davidson, Perth County’s senior policy planner. “The first phase involves a background review of the overarching guiding planning policies that direct how land shall be used within the province to understand the key issues and opportunities to be addressed through each zoning bylaw. Phase two involves the creation of discussion papers that focus on key chapters found within the zoning bylaws.

“The discussion papers will review trends and best practices for key chapters within the zoning bylaws and include a comparator analysis of similar municipalities with recently adopted zoning bylaw amendments to understand current best practices.”

Based on the research conducted in the project’s first two phases, Davidson says county planning staff will draft new zoning bylaws for each of the lower-tier municipalities, which will then be presented to the public through a variety of engagement platforms, open houses and public meetings for comment and feedback.

“A mix of community engagement activities and events are to be deployed throughout the course of the project, including in-person open houses, virtual information sessions, one-on-one office hours and public meetings,” Davidson said. “We will be using council meetings, the project website, social media, print media and tax mailouts to keep residents informed of upcoming engagement events. As the first phase of the project is background-research heavy, residents can check back in spring 2026 on how to get involved.”

That feedback will then be incorporated, where possible, into the final zoning bylaws for council consideration and adoption. Following council adoption, the review’s fifth phase will see the zoning bylaws go through the statutory process under the Planning Act for appeals and feedback before they are implemented.

As many of the recent changes to the county’s official plan were made to bring the official plan into conformity with provincial policy, county planning staff will take a similar approach with the zoning bylaw review.

“This is by no means a complete list, but some of the provisions that will be looked at during this review include the expansion of permissions for on-farm diversified uses, the alignment of accessible parking provisions with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act and permissions for mixed-use buildings,” Davidson said.

The comprehensive zoning bylaw review is a chance to ensure the zoning rules in each local municipality work for citizens who engage with the planning process, including community groups, developers and professionals.

For more information about the review, visit the project website at www.perthcounty.ca/zblreview or email zblreview@perthcounty.ca to register for regular project updates.