Frequently Asked Questions
What is the R-CG District?
The R-CG (Residential - Grade-Oriented Infill) District is a relatively new, low density residential land use designation, primarily intended to accommodate rowhomes within Calgary's developed areas, while also allowing for single detached, side-by-side and duplex homes, with an optional secondary or backyard suite.
Maximum building height is limited to 11m and the 75 units / hectare maximum density theoretically allows a typical 50ft. x 120ft. development site to accommodate 3 to 4 units.
What is the point of the R-CG District?
The R-CG District is intended to provide flexibility of built form for neighbourhoods in Calgary's developed areas. The regulations and housing forms of the R-CG District are designed to work with existing building, lot and block patterns in order to add housing choices and allow innovative infill redevelopment over time. R-CG built forms blend well with the low density, low profile dwellings that characterize Calgary's established neighbourhoods, while sensitively adding density close to existing infrastructure and community resources.
The R-CG District encourages new residential built forms like rowhouses, which address the "missing middle" - a form of housing that meets the needs of those looking for inner-city housing options that lie somewhere between a traditional condominium and a single-family home or duplex.
What is a rowhouse?
A rowhouse building is a series of three or more houses that are attached together, side-by-side, facing the street.
What does a R-CG rowhouse look like?
We are committed to building well-designed, high quality, and sensitively scaled homes for those looking to live in Calgary's vibrant inner-city neighbourhoods. Our approach is embodied in the high quality materials we use and the responsiveness of our designs to the surrounding community.
Many of our projects are built on corners, to accommodate a distinct entrance onto the street for each unit, along with a common garage structure that is accessed via a rear lane. Corner parcels benefit from streets on both the front and side of the property. The R-CG District allows rowhouse buildings located on corner parcels to be built up to the rear property line. This encourages innovative site configurations that face houses onto both front and side streets. Housing that faces both streets enhances the residential appearance of side streets, slows traffic on side streets and enhances pedestrian safety and experience on adjacent sidewalks.
Below are a few examples of our recent projects:
SOUTH CALGARY 31 - 2039 31 Avenue SW
CAPITOL HILL 18 - 2021 17 Street NW
WEST HILLHURST 01 - 2139 1 Avenue NW
What does a R-CG rowhouse site plan look like?
Typical site layout for 4 units and a detached garage structure with 4 individual garage bays:
Typical site layout for 7 units and a detached garage structure with 7 individual garage bays:
R-CG District height rules for Rowhouse buildings allow up to an 11m height in the middle of a building, but maintain contextual height rules for parts of the building directly adjacent to other low density districts. Regardless of building form, the R-CG District limits the maximum height within 4.2 metres of the adjacent property line to 8.6 metres, similarly to other Contextual Districts that have rules governing the relationship to adjacent properties.
Furthermore, any floor above 8.6 metres must be reduced by 25% to prevent the building from being large and imposing. As a result, the maximum 11m height for a rowhome is typically only achieved at a building’s roof peak. District rules for building coverage and amenity space also ensure that appropriate yard space is still provided.
What is the maximum height of R-CG rowhouse buildings?
How does parking for R-CG rowhouses work?
The R-CG district requires one vehicle stall per rowhome unit. These stalls are often accommodated inside a common detached garage, accessed via the rear lane. The common detached garage features private garage bays for each rowhome unit. Much like other forms of low density housing, including detached and semi-detached homes, visitors are able to make use of on-street parking in the surrounding area.
What about waste and recycling?
Like other detached and semi-detached homes with lane access, waste and recycling is handled via the rear lane. As per City regulations, each private garage bay accommodates storage space for three standard City of Calgary waste, recycling and compost bins.
How are outdoor amenity spaces designed?
The R-CG District requires private outdoor amenity space for all types of housing. This reinforces a pattern of usable private back yard space in low density residential neighbourhoods. Amenity space rules are complimentary to the building depth rules and parcel coverage rules of the R-CG District.
The R-CG District allows for rooftop terraces – patios located on the roof of the first or second storey of a building. The area of a rooftop terrace is limited in size and interacts with the floor area restrictions for a third storey in order to encourage combined indoor and outdoor living spaces on first or second storey rooftops.
The R-CG District requires that trees be planted or retained for all new developments. In the R-C1 and R-C2 Districts these rules only apply to Contextual Single Detached Dwellings and Contextual Semi-detached Dwellings.
What about landscaping?
Are secondary suites allowed in the R-CG District?
Although secondary suites are a permitted use in the R-CG District, they are not currently integrated into the designs of our homes.
Can secondary suites be added after a rowhome is built?
No. The inclusion of secondary suites in rowhome buildings requires the inclusion of additional fire prevention measures and fire rated walls. These requirements cannot be retrofitted into a rowhome building after it has been constructed. These measures must be integrated into building design from the outset. This means that a proposed rowhome development with four dwelling units cannot accommodate the future addition of secondary suites.
What about secondary suite parking?
Secondary suites require an additional parking stall be provided, unless the secondary suite is smaller than 45 square metres / 485 square feet.
From the start of the Land Use Redesignation and Development Permit application processes, a typical R-CG rowhouse project is planned, approved, and built within 16 - 18 months. This general estimate is subject to The City of Calgary application review and approvals process timeline.