Alberta tiny house co-op faces 'speed bumps' | General Homesteading Discussion | Forums

cool idea, hope the local government works with him on this

It turns out Ashley Baptiste wasn’t the only person excited about creating Alberta’s first tiny house community on a peaceful property east of Calgary.

After posting an ad online more than two months ago, pitching the idea of a small home co-op on his 1.6-hectare property and asking would-be homeowners to get in touch, Baptiste was swamped with nearly 500 phone calls and e-mails.

But, Baptiste said bylaws and zoning rules within Wheatland County, the municipal district where his land lies, could force an army of tiny home enthusiasts to move elsewhere.

Baptiste envisions renting out tiny plots on his land, lovingly named ‘Serenity Acres’. He wants to establish a community of a few small homes where families embrace a simpler lifestyle, neighbours know each other, and food is grown in a communal garden.

“We got responses from all walks of life,” Baptiste said.

“From retired single ladies, to young families, to handicapped people on AISH, as well as people that have the money that just want to live more sustainability.”

Baptiste said he met with a Wheatland County development officer, who laid out the requirements needed to make his vision a reality, and “the dollar signs just added up.”

“The (county) has their bylaws, which are pretty black and white. They’re trying to squeeze us into their definitions but tiny homes are so new that we don’t fit anywhere. An RV park is the closest suitable option, so we have to follow the guidelines of an RV park.”

Baptiste said that means a central septic system is needed (and sustainable composting toilets are out), power metres for each tiny home are required (and off-grid power solutions are off the table), and roadways with parking pads at each plot need to be built.

“Paving our wild grasslands doesn’t really sound like what we wanted,” he said.

Baptiste said the cost of everything required by the county would be passed on to tiny plot renters, and paying a large sum to rent a small piece of land goes against the entire tiny house movement.

And the biggest cost hurdle Baptiste said the project currently faces is the fact his four-acre land is one acre too small for the needed zoning, which means he would need to purchase one acre from a neighbour before he could get started on the project.

But buoyed by the passion of the tiny home aficionados Baptiste has heard from and met with, he’s intent on finding a way to build a tiny house co-op in Alberta.

“We’ve hit a couple speed bumps but we’re trying to find solutions,” Baptiste said.

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