Saturna trustees direct staff to draft housing amendments

The proposed changes would revise secondary-suite mapping and extend water-storage requirements across the island, with a community information meeting planned for January 2025.

The Denman Firestarter · Governance · 2026-09-26 · Saturna Island

The Saturna Island Local Trust Committee directed staff to prepare a draft bylaw revising the secondary-suite map using updated provincial saltwater-intrusion mapping and extending water-storage requirements to new residential buildings, visitor accommodation units and additions across the island.^[1]

The direction also calls for changing references to “rainwater” to “freshwater,” removing the East Point Water Management Area schedule and simplifying a secondary-suite provision by deleting its reference to areas with moderate to high aquifer vulnerability to saltwater intrusion.^[1]

The committee also directed staff to schedule a Community Information Meeting on the Minor Amendments Housing Project at its January 2025 regular meeting and advertise it in the Saturna Scribbler.^[1]

During discussion, trustees raised water supply, the cost of tanks and the need to consider updated maps and land-suitability and groundwater-recharge information.^[1] The minutes say the draft bylaw would remain open to changes after the community meeting.^[1]

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