Land Use Bylaw Rewrite

Overview

We are rewriting our Land Use Bylaw, the document that guides how land is used and the rules around development. This rewrite is a full, start-to-finish update to create a bylaw that is easier to understand, more consistent, and better aligned with Canmore’s future.

This multi-phase project is expected to run through 2028 and includes technical analysis, best practice review, engagement with interest holders and the public, and a full drafting of the bylaw.

Context

Our current Land Use Bylaw (2018-22) has become increasingly complex and difficult to navigate. Since it was adopted in 2018, a lot has changed, including development pressures, community priorities, and new municipal plans that set the direction for how our community will grow.

The current bylaw can be hard to use and doesn’t reflect recent changes in our policies, community priorities, or development trends. A full rewrite allows us to fix those issues and create a better tool for shaping Canmore’s future that will involve modernizing the rules, smplifying language and structure, and improving accessibility and navigation.

Get Informed

• Read the existing Land Use Bylaw.
• Read the Issues Report that we developed during the Critique Phase that summarizes what's working and what isn't with the current bylaw.
• Read the Pathways Report that we developed during the Learn Phase that summarizes best practices in how land use bylaws, or zoning bylaws, can be structured. It identifies a set of possible “pathways”, proven regulatory approaches used by municipalities across Canada, North America, and beyond, that may be appropriate for application in Canmore and set the foundational structure of a new Land Use Bylaw.
  
  

Webinar

March 26, 2026 from noon-1 p.m. | We hosted an online webinar where you will hear from our project team who answered your questions following a presentation.

Get Involved

Events

April 13, 2026, from 5:30-8:00 p.m. | Talk to our project teams and share your voice at a family-friendly community information night at Canmore Brewing Company. Drop in anytime.

Online survey

March 17-April 17, 2026 | Take our short online survey that will help us understand challenges, gaps, and opportunities that you encounter with the current bylaw.

We will share all upcoming opportunities to learn more about the project and share your perspective on this webpage. You can also subscribe for direct updates on this project by subscribing to the project newsletter on the right hand banner.

How We Will Use Your Input

This is the first phase of engagement for this project. This intent of phase is to better understand the perspectives of residents and interest holders and identify challenges, gaps, and opportunities within the existing Land Use Bylaw. We want to understand:

• who and how the Land Use Bylaw is used by the public.
• priorities and perspectives on specific land use topics, such as accessory dwelling units.
• whether perspectives shift based on demographic information and experience with the bylaw.
• insight into potential paths forward while drafting bylaw sections.
• priorities for future engagement topics and content.

We will consider and reflect public concerns and perspectives in the final draft of the bylaw that must be completed for council review and approval in late 2027 or early 2028. Public input from this survey is one factor that will inform the Land Use Bylaw Rewrite, alongside council-approved regulatory plans, targeted interest holder engagement, and technical land use analysis. This process will also include a public hearing.

Contact
If you have specific questions, please contact the Planning & Development Department