Kinniburgh South architectural guidelines: Phase 2B sizes and garages

In Kinniburgh South, Chestermere, the Phase 2B architectural controls set a minimum of 1,400 sq ft for a bungalow and 2,000 sq ft for a two storey on an R-1 lot, both measured as total area (Kinniburgh South Phase 2B controls, May 2021, p. 7). The same document caps the two side yards at 4 m (13 ft 1 in) in total and asks for a $10,000 deposit per lot. It was updated in May 2021, and the community is now selling its final phase, Phase 4, so check which document covers your lot.

What size house can you build in Kinniburgh South?

On an R-1 lot in Phase 2B, at least 1,400 sq ft for a bungalow and 2,000 sq ft for a two storey. The controls say "total", so these are whole-house figures, not main floor minimums. The coordinator "reserves the right to limit the minimum size" lot by lot, will consider excellent design that falls short, and the City of Chestermere's bylaws govern in every case.

Kinniburgh South Phase 2B house and lot rules, from the May 2021 controls:

Note: Phase 2B controls updated May 2021, pages 3, 7, 9 and 12; metric areas are our conversion. Setbacks other than the side yard total come from the City of Chestermere.

The 4 m side yard cap is how the controls enforce massing. A wide house on a wide lot is the goal; a narrow house with big side yards isn't allowed.

What do the Kinniburgh South garage rules say?

Side drive garages are encouraged where possible, and front drive garages carry detail rules (Phase 2B controls, May 2021, p. 6):

• A garage 24 ft or wider needs two single doors.
• On a triple garage, the one-car portion sits at least 2 ft back from the double portion.
• Doors are 7 ft or 8 ft high, metal insulated panel doors, coloured to the house; window inserts are limited to square windows the size of one panel, and sunburst windows aren't permitted.
• No more than 16 in (406 mm) from the garage roof soffit line to the top of the door without extra detailing.
• A front garage side wall that runs more than 15 ft (4.6 m) to the face of the house or front deck is detailed like a front elevation.
• Side drive garages need detailing on the street face, such as boxed out windows.

The two-door rule catches people who plan a wide double garage for a truck. At 24 ft, a single wide door is out, so the door layout and the post between them go on the plan. Our garage size guide has Calgary's stall minimums as a depth check, though Chestermere sets its own bylaws.

What should a Kinniburgh South exterior look like?

Traditional styles, with real material. The controls allow Tudor, Prairie, Georgian, French and Craftsman, pure or mixed, and reject designs at odds with them, such as a flat-roofed Santa Fe Adobe house (p. 3). No more than two homes in a row can share a style, and holding a style on a lot then changing it costs $100.

The material rules on pages 4 to 6:

• Masonry on every home, about 20% of the front street exposure, returning at least 2 ft at corners. No floating stone, and no stone on a second storey without stone below it.
• Vinyl siding must be upgraded solid tone in a triple 3 in (T3) lap profile; cove profile isn't permitted, nor peach, pink or dusty rose.
• Trim around windows, columns and gables is Smartboard or Hardie board; no stucco, aluminium or vinyl trim.
• Shakes are Hardie board at minimum; vinyl shakes aren't permitted.
• Fascia on open gables facing streets or green space is 8 in, in Smartboard.
• Columns that are highly visible are at least 12 in wide, and masonry columns at least 16 in.
• Parging is required, to no more than 2 ft above finished grade.
• Roofing in architectural grade asphalt shingle is recommended; 3-tab and interlock shingles aren't accepted, and blue, green or red roofs aren't permitted.

Decks more than 3 ft above grade are built with the house, and visible deck columns are at least 12 by 12 in. A wood front porch is considered only if it's over 100 sq ft (9.3 m²). Similar elevations can't sit within four lots of each other, which means three lots between them.

What are the Kinniburgh South fencing and lot rules?

They depend on what the lot backs onto (Phase 2B controls, May 2021, p. 8):

Note: Phase 2B lots, May 2021. A restrictive covenant on title also covers fencing, drainage swales and grading, so read the title too.

As a rule, accessory buildings aren't permitted in Kinniburgh South; exceptions may be considered where one isn't highly visible. Poplar trees aren't permitted, and recreational vehicles can't be stored outside on the lot.

How do you get approval in Kinniburgh South?

The owner submits to the architectural coordinator, Home Works Architectural Design, through StreetScape Plus (Phase 2B controls, May 2021, p. 2). The package is a 1:200 plot plan by a surveyor, four elevations, two cross-sections, finishes and colours. Formal submissions are approved or rejected within five business days, and the $10,000 deposit is due at submission. Site work can't start before the grade slip and the City of Chestermere building permit.

The pre-inspection step is easy to skip and costly when you do: without a written damage report with the application, the controls assume any broken curb or sidewalk is the owner's, and repairs come out of the deposit.

Walking a Kinniburgh South plan at full size

The Kinniburgh South rules push toward wide houses with a lot of front detail: side yards that can't total more than 4 m, masonry across a fifth of the front, and a two storey of at least 2,000 sq ft. At 1to1 Plans Calgary, your plan is lit at full size on a walkable LED floor, room by room, so you can feel whether the width went into rooms you use. Elevations show on a wall-size screen behind you, which is the easy place to judge where the masonry goes.

Bring your builder or designer; changes go up on the floor while you're standing there, and you keep the recording (for homeowners). Sessions are quoted free for each plan (pricing). Send a PDF or DWG three days ahead and book a session. For the budget behind a 2,000 sq ft house, see what a custom home costs in Calgary.