By Steve Hubrecht
The Village of Radium Hot Springs held a public hearing earlier last month on amendments that would clarify definitions of various types of accommodation within the village’s zoning bylaw.
Under the proposed new definitions a hotel is a building (or group of buildings) primarily used for tourist accommodation; a motel is similar but each building (or group of buildings) has a separate exterior entrance with access to on-site parking; and short-term rental (STR) means commercial use of a dwelling unit for less than 30 consecutive days and which does not fall under normal tourist accommodation zoning.
The new definition of ‘tourist accommodation’ will mean temporary accommodation to the travelling public for periods of less than one month or 30 consecutive days and — critically — ‘tourist accommodation’ does not include a residential tenancy subject to the B.C.’s Residential Tenancy Act.
The public hearing drew several residents.
Local realtor Cris Leonard asked for clarification on C1 zoned accessory dwelling units (the C1 zone is ‘highway commercial’ and includes many of the hotels and motels in Radium along Highway 93 heading to Kootenay National Park). He also asked about the effect of long-term rentals in motels (something not allowed under the current zoning bylaw, and something that the new definitions would even more clearly preclude), and asked — if the new definitions are adopted as bylaw — how the village would enforce them.
Radium chief administrative officer Adrian Bergles replied that accessory dwelling units would be limited to two in the C1 zone under the amendments. He also explained that enforcement will be ongoing if the bylaw amendment is adopted.
