Near Permit-Ready House Designs

Accessory Dwelling Units: Build a Backyard Home with Confidence

The City of Belleville is making it easier for homeowners to add a detached ADU on their property.

Detached ADUs, sometimes called garden suites or laneway-style homes, create more housing choice, support gentle neighbourhood growth, and offer flexible options for family members, rental income, or aging in place. While interest in ADUs is growing, many homeowners are unsure where to start due to design, zoning, and permitting complexity.

To simplify the process, the City is creating a free, publicly available library of high-quality, near permit-ready detached ADU designs. These designs will be developed by local designers and builders, intended to help you move from idea to building permit faster and with greater certainty.

What’s Included in the ADU Design Library

The City’s ADU Design Library will feature:

Near permit-ready detached ADU designs of up to 100 m²
Complete architectural drawing sets suitable to use as a starting point for building permit applications
Designs that align with the Ontario Building Code and City of Belleville zoning requirements
Flexible layouts that allow for personalization of materials, finishes, and aesthetics

To broaden the range of options, the City is also showcasing two professionally developed detached ADU designs provided by the CMHC's Housing Design Catalogue. These designs will complement the local submissions and demonstrate additional approaches to compact, efficient, and well-designed backyard housing.

Building More Housing, Together – With the CMHC Housing Design Catalogue

To support more housing options in the community, the City of Belleville is also pleased to participate in Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's (CMHC) Local Partners Program, showcasing their Housing Design Catalogue (HDC) that provides a variety of housing designs for Ontario, and nationally. The near permit-ready housing types below follow a streamlined process developed by the City of Belleville and expand the housing types that are available to develop.  The City of Belleville will continue to maintain and promote this Near Permit-Ready Design Library as a long-term resource for residents. By combining ready-to-use designs, clear pricing, and access to local expertise, this initiative helps make a variety of housing designs, including detached Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU), more achievable, affordable and approachable. All HDC designs are free, however, the approval of a qualified professional such as an architect, engineer, or licensed designer with a Building Code Identification Number (BCIN), is required to amend the designs to your property. See below for further information.

Predictable Costs, Local Expertise

Each base ADU design developed by a local designer will be available for $1,000, and all ADU designs as part of the CMHC’s Housing Design Catalogue are free, to provide homeowners with a clear and predictable starting point. If your property requires site-specific adjustments you will need to work directly with a designer or architect to finalize the plans at their standard professional rates.

The City is inviting qualified local designers and builders to contribute near permit-ready detached ADU designs of up to 100 m².

To Get Involved – Local Designers, please visit our Call to Action page to learn more about the Near Permit-Ready Detached Accessory Dwelling Unit Designs program.

Supporting Resources

To help you plan with confidence, the City has created a Zoning Guide for Detached ADUs explaining detached ADU zoning requirements. This guide applies to all ADU design promoted by the City (Local Designer and CMHC Housing Design Catalogue).

City Staff are also available to help confirm applicable zoning conditions and to explain the overall approval and permitting process. For assistance, residents may contact the Approvals Division by phone at 613-967-3224 or by email at planning@belleville.ca, and staff will direct inquiries to the appropriate department as needed.

A Qualified Professional Still Guides the Final Step

While the designs will be near permit-ready, a licensed professional (such as a BCIN-qualified designer or architect) is required to finalize drawings for your specific property. This may include:

Designing foundations or basements appropriate to site conditions
Preparing a plot plan showing building placement, access, and parking
Preparing site servicing drawings
Confirming heat-loss and energy performance calculations
Incorporating accessibility or enhanced energy-efficiency features

Because City of Belleville Building Officials have reviewed the plans in advance (see plans below), building permit issuance will be faster, and using these standardized designs saves time and costs.

For more information on the CMHC’s Housing Design Catalogue, refer to the User Guide and FAQ.