The Land Use Bylaw is the City of Calgary’s authoritative land-use document, determining what uses are permitted or discretionary on which plots of land across the City.
It categorizes these land uses into Districts (not zones), and is understood as a Development Control document, not a Zoning document.
The Bylaw features 60 distinct districts across 11 groupings:
Low-Density Residential Districts
- Residential – Contextual Large Parcel One (R-C1L)*
- Residential – Contextual One Dwelling (R-C1)*
- Residential – Contextual Narrow Parcel One Dwelling (R-C1N)
- Residential – Contextual One / Two Dwelling (R-C2)
- Residential – One Dwelling (R-1)*
- Residential – Narrow Parcel One Dwelling (R-1N)
- Residential – One / Two Dwelling (R-2)
- Residential – Low Density Multiple Dwelling (R-2M)
- Residential – Manufactured Home (R-MH)
- Residential – Grade-Oriented Infill (R-CG)**
- Residential – Low Density Mixed Housing (R-G)***
* – “s” is a modifier added when the zone includes secondary suites
** – “ex” is a modifier added when the zone excludes secondary suites
*** – “m” is a modifier added when the zone is not intended to accommodate single-detached dwellings
Multi-Residential Districts*
- Multi-Residential – Contextual Grade-Oriented (M-CG)
- Multi-Residential – Contextual Low Profile (M-C1)
- Multi-Residential – Contextual Medium Profile (M-C2)
- Multi-Residential – At Grade Housing (M-G)
- Multi-Residential – Low Profile (M-1)
- Multi-Residential – Medium Profile (M-2)
- Multi-Residential – High Density Low Rise (M-H1)
- Multi-Residential – High Density Medium Rise (M-H2)
- Multi-Residential – High Density High Rise (M-H3)
- Multi-Residential – Low Profile Support Commercial (M-X1)
- Multi-Residential – Medium Profile Support Commercial (M-X2)
* – Districts may have restrictions on Floor Area Ratio, Height, and Density, denoted by f, h, and d respectively.
Commercial Districts
- Commercial – Neighbourhood 1 (C-N1)
- Commercial – Neighbourhood 2 (C-N2)
- Commercial – Community 1 (C-C1)
- Commercial – Community 2 (C-C2)**
- Commercial – Corridor 1 (C-COR1)**
- Commercial – Corridor 2 (C-COR2)**
- Commercial – Corridor 3 (C-COR3)**
- Commercial – Office (C-O)**
- Commercial – Regional 1 (C-R1)*
- Commercial – Regional 2 (C-R2)*
- Commercial – Regional 3 (C-R3)
* – Districts may have restrictions on Floor Area Ratio, denoted by the modifier “f”
** – Districts may have restrictions on Floor Area Ratio and Height, denoted by the modifiers “f” and “h”
Industrial Districts
- Industrial – General (I-G)
- Industrial – Business (I-B)*
- Industrial – Edge (I-E)
- Industrial – Commercial (I-C)
- Industrial – Redevelopment (I-R)
- Industrial – Outdoor (I-O)
- Industrial – Heavy (I-H)
* – Modifiers f, and h can be applied to denote the maximum allowable Floor Area Ratio and Height respectively.
Special Purpose Districts
- Special Purpose – Urban Nature (S-UN)
- Special Purpose – School, Park, and Community Reserve (S-SPR)
- Special Purpose – Community Service (S-CS)
- Special Purpose – Recreation (S-R)
- Special Purpose – Community Institution (S-CI)
- Special Purpose – City and Regional Infrastructure (S-CRI)
- Special Purpose – University Research Park (S-URP)
- Special Purpose – Future Urban Development (S-FUD)
- Special Purpose – Transportation and Utility (S-TUC)
Centre City Zones
- Centre City Multi-Residential High Rise (CC-MH)
- Centre City Multi-Residential High Rise Support Commercial (CC-MHX)
Centre City East Village Districts
- Centre City East Village Transition (CC-ET)
- Centre City East Village Integrated Residential (CC-EIR)
- Centre City East Village Primarily Residential (CC-EPR)
- Centre City East Village River Residential (CC-ERR)
- Centre City East Village Recreational (CC-ER)
Commercial Residential Districts
- Commercial Residential (CR20/R20)
Mixed Use Districts*
- Mixed-Use – General (MU-1)
- Mixed Use – Active Frontage (MU-2)
* Modifiers f, h, and d are added to indicate maximum allowable Floor Area Ratio, Height, and Density respectively.
Housing Districts
- Housing – Grade Oriented (H-GO)