Family Friendly Housing

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The Family-Friendly Housing project is a City of Hamilton initiative that is looking at ways to provide and encourage an adequate supply of housing that is suitable for larger households and families with children. Having enough supply of suitable housing available, as well as designing developments and neighbourhoods in ways that are supportive of families, are key factors in ensuring that housing meets the needs of all citizens.

The term ‘family-friendly housing’ in this context refers primarily to housing that meets the needs of households with children (i.e. parent/guardian or multi-generational family with at least one child).

On September 21, 2021, Planning Committee received Staff Report PED21107(External link), containing a discussion paper titled Encouraging Family Friendly Housing in Hamilton. The discussion paper outlined numerous planning-related actions for family friendly housing that could be considered for Hamilton.

We want to hear what you think!

From February to April 2022, staff will be engaging with the community to obtain feedback on the actions outlined in the discussion paper titled Encouraging Family Friendly Housing in Hamilton. Your input will be used to develop recommendations on which actions should be pursued further. Future steps will include refining the details of the recommended actions and preparing a strategy for implementation.

Virtual Public Information Meeting

Virtual meetings were held on March 23, 2022 & March 24, 2022, to provide an overview of the project and hear feedback. The same information was presented at both meetings.


The Family-Friendly Housing project is a City of Hamilton initiative that is looking at ways to provide and encourage an adequate supply of housing that is suitable for larger households and families with children. Having enough supply of suitable housing available, as well as designing developments and neighbourhoods in ways that are supportive of families, are key factors in ensuring that housing meets the needs of all citizens.

The term ‘family-friendly housing’ in this context refers primarily to housing that meets the needs of households with children (i.e. parent/guardian or multi-generational family with at least one child).

On September 21, 2021, Planning Committee received Staff Report PED21107(External link), containing a discussion paper titled Encouraging Family Friendly Housing in Hamilton. The discussion paper outlined numerous planning-related actions for family friendly housing that could be considered for Hamilton.

We want to hear what you think!

From February to April 2022, staff will be engaging with the community to obtain feedback on the actions outlined in the discussion paper titled Encouraging Family Friendly Housing in Hamilton. Your input will be used to develop recommendations on which actions should be pursued further. Future steps will include refining the details of the recommended actions and preparing a strategy for implementation.

Virtual Public Information Meeting

Virtual meetings were held on March 23, 2022 & March 24, 2022, to provide an overview of the project and hear feedback. The same information was presented at both meetings.


  • Discussion Paper Actions

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    27 Jan 2022

    A variety of different approaches are being considered in the discussion paper titled Encouraging Family Friendly Housing in Hamilton. These approaches include initiatives such as policy amendments, new zoning standards, design guidelines, and others.

    The 11 possible actions were outlined in the discussion paper released in September 2021, and are as listed:

    1. Add policy language to the Official Plan about meeting the housing needs of families with children and larger households.
    2. Add policy language to the Official Plan promoting the use of flexible unit layouts that can be adapted over time to meet the changing needs of residents.
    3. Add specific targets for family sized units in new high density developments to the Official Plan to promote an adequate supply of housing, particularly in intensification areas.
    4. Implement Zoning requirements for family sized units (ie. 3 bedrooms) in new high density developments. This action would need to be implemented in conjunction with targets applied in the Official Plan (See action 3).
    5. Define a “family-oriented dwelling unit” or “unit suitable for larger household sizes” in the Zoning By-law and develop zoning requirements for these uses.
    6. Require shared outdoor play areas or public-private open spaces with play areas in the Zoning By-law, for housing types where private yards are not provided or are minimal.
    7. For multiple dwellings, require indoor communal amenity space in addition to outdoor space in the Zoning By-law.
    8. Create design guidelines for outdoor amenity areas.
    9. Create family-friendly design guidelines for the interior design of high-rise buildings and units.
    10. Conduct neighbourhood assessments to identify how child-friendly a neighbourhood is and develop focused action plans or strategies for improvements.
    11. Require a Housing Options report to be submitted as part of a complete application under the Planning Act, to collect information about proposed housing unit types, sizes, number of bedrooms and anticipated price ranges.

    View the full discussion paper(External link)

  • Planning Language 101

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    08 Feb 2022

    Some additional terms that we use in Planning:

    • An Official Plan is a plan approved by Council that describes how land in a community should be used. Official Plans mainly deal with issues related to:
      • where new housing, employment and shops should be located
      • protecting the environment and heritage
      • what services like roads, sewers, parks and schools will be needed
      • when and in what order parts of your community should grow
    • A Zoning By-law controls the use of land on each property in a community. It includes details such as:
      • how land may be used
      • where buildings and other structures can be located
      • the types of buildings permitted
      • the lot size and dimensions
      • parking requirements
      • building heights
    • Design Guidelines are a set of design statements to guide land development to achieve a desired level of design quality.
    • Neighbourhood Assessments, in the context of Family Friendly Housing would assess how child-friendly a neighbourhood is and would include action plans or strategies for improvements.
    • A Housing Options Report is a report that includes proposed housing unit types, sizes, number of bedrooms and anticipated price ranges.
    • A Multiple Dwelling is a building that contains three or more dwelling units and includes a wide variety of housing styles and types such as block townhouses, stacked townhouse dwellings and apartments.
    • An Amenity Space is a shared indoor or outdoor area that is provided in a development for the recreational use or social use of residents.
Page last updated: 04 Apr 2024, 11:47 AM