Submitting a Development Application

• Complete the Land Development Application Form. 
• If you are submitting an application on behalf of the property owner(s), you need to complete the Letter of Authorization, to be signed by the registered owner(s) for each property that is part of the application.
• For strata properties, provide accompanying authorization form from the strata council (plus a resolution from the strata with 75% in favour).
• Ownership details included on the form must match the ownership information in the Title Search for each property. 

• Provide one Title Search for each property included in the application.
• If the property is owned by a corporate entity, attach a current corporate/company search that includes the Director and Officer information. 

• Provide one copy of all charges registered against each property included in the application (financial charges can be excluded). 

• If the Applicant/Agent is not the registered owner of the property(ies), complete a Lobbyist Registration form.
• Complete all sections of the Lobbyist Registration Form (see Lobbyist Registration Policy). 

• Under the Environmental Management Act and Contaminated Sites Regulation (CSR), a Site Disclosure Statement is required to be submitted when a commercial or industrial site has a history of activities defined under Schedule 2 of the CSR, or one or more of the triggers for site identification applies to the site and there are no applicable exemptions.
• If you are submitting an application which proposes to redevelop a site, you are required to include a Site Disclosure Statement with your application.  
• This applies to any type of redevelopment. 

• Owner to complete and sign letter for development permit applications involving buildings or major occupancies covered by the City’s Step Code requirements, including multi-family, commercial and industrial buildings. 

Data sheets describe the site statistics of your proposed development. More than one may apply:

• Subdivision Data Sheet
• Development Application Data Sheet: Must be attached to all building plans that are submitted as part of a Rezoning, Development Permit, Development Variance Permit, Land Use Contract, and Neighbourhood Pub application.
• Commercial/Industrial Fascia/Awning Sign

This checklist is required for land development applications such as OCP Amendments, Rezoning and Development Permits. 

To determine if this applies, schedule a pre-application meeting with Planning & Development staff. If required, submit the completed checklist by emailing a completed PDF or handing in a hardcopy form.

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• Legal description and civic address(es) of parcels 
• Bearings and dimensions of existing parcels 
• Building envelopes 
• Existing tree locations 
• Existing grades at each corner of the parcel and spot elevations/contours of the property at one metre intervals 
• Location of all registered easements and rights-of-way 
• Existing street names 
• If a watercourse is present within 30 metres of the proposed development, the location of the high water mark, top-of-bank, and required setbacks (as determined by a Qualified Environmental Professional) and as set out in Part 7A of the Zoning Bylaw

• Scale (in metric) 

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• Legal description and civic address(es) of parcels 

• Existing and proposed street names 

• Proposed lot layout with dimensions for all lot lines (lot width/depth in metres) and lot area (in square metres) 

• Location of existing watercourses, landscape buffers or other features 

• Location and dimension of existing easements or rights-of-way 

• Location and size of any proposed parkland, riparian area, or land to be conveyed to the City of Surrey 

• If slopes on the property are equal to or greater than 30% (i.e., steep slopes), identify areas of steep slopes (i.e., hatching/shading) and provide a duplicate lot area by subtracting this area from the overall lot size calculation 

• Scale (in metric) 
• North arrow 
• Legal description and civic address(es) of parcels 
• Existing street names 
• Existing property lines
• Location of existing building envelopes 
• Location of existing access, parking, and circulation areas 
• Location of existing watercourses, landscape buffers or other features 
• Location and dimension of existing easements or rights-of-way 
• Proposed buildings/additions and/or landscape features 
• Label setbacks (existing and proposed)
• Location Certificates for retained buildings and structures require floor area ratio (FAR), lot coverage, and setback information

All drawings for which an Architect is required must be signed and sealed by the Architect.  Please ensure digital drawings are flattened so they are easier to review. Provide dimensions in SI or Metric (Imperial can follow in parenthesis). 

Site statistics:

• Address 
• Site size (gross and/or net as applicable) 
• Official Community Plan (OCP) land use designation 
• Neighbourhood Concept Plan (NCP)/Secondary Plan land use designation 
• Proposed use and proposed zone

Development details:  

• Density (FAR and UPH if applicable) 
• Lot coverage 
• Building height (in metres/storeys)
• Floor areas (total and per use)
• Parking rates (vehicle and bicycle) 
• Unit types, sizes and breakdown 
• Amenity areas (square metres) 

Context plan: 

• Broad scale (2 blocks) orthophoto with the building(s) footprint on the subject site, trees, vegetation, roads, watercourses, grading, and other major features within the site and on the abutting properties. Note, this is intended as analysis, rather than simply a location plan. 
• Context photos 
• Drawn context plan with:
  • ​​​​​immediately adjacent sites (all sides) existing building footprints (heights noted) 
  • immediately adjacent sites (all sides) future potential building footprints (heights noted) 
  • neighbour trees and proposed building(s) 
     
• For towers and midrise only: dimensioned tower (i.e. above podium) separation plan 

Base plan (a fully dimensioned separate drawing, on its own sheet, showing only):

• Existing and new property lines dimensioned (show new PL in darker line weight, use traditional long dash, short dash/dot line type) 
• Corner cuts dimensioned
• Statutory rights-of-ways and easements 
• Include a 0.5 m statutory right of way along streets clear of any fences, posts, steps or underground parking structures, as required by City of Surrey Engineering. Show street labels. 
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• Environmental/ALR/Hydro/etc., setbacks that are not easements
• Trees proposed to be retained
• Street labels 

Site analysis: 

• Provide site analysis diagrams to illustrate the site design issues, constraints and opportunities (i.e., setbacks, grading, surrounding land uses, existing trees, open space, pedestrian paths) 

Design concept (excluding townhouses): 

• Provide a schematic design diagram to illustrate the design concept and main organizing principles (i.e., vehicle access, pedestrian circulation, massing, views) 
• Provide photographs of example projects to illustrate the proposed design character for the building and landscaping 

Architectural site plan:  

For large sites that contain multiple buildings, site plans may need to be split to include a simpler full site plan, keying larger scale site plans for each construction phase, or plan area. 

• Colour is not required and should not be included  
• New property lines only (show ultimate/new property line in darker line weight) 
• Setbacks (use different line type from property line) 
• Locate all proposed buildings 
• Include buildings on neighbouring properties if setback less than 3m 
• Provide a clear ground floor building outline, with entrance locations indicated; overhanging levels above can be indicated with at dashed line and labeled   
• Include dimensions for :
  • overall site
  • setbacks (required and proposed)
  • overall building(s) 
  • separation between buildings 
• Include retained trees only (not new trees), including their tree protection zone and no-build area 
• Overhanging levels, balconies and canopies above to be indicated with a dashed line and labelled
• Concept grading
  • at the corners of the site (illustrating any required retaining)
  • along shared property lines noting that grading 'meets' existing
  • along the PL at all entry points 
  • top and bottom of retaining walls and stairs 
  • elevations/location and slope percentage of any sloped walkways or ramps 
  • main floor elevations 
• Vehicle and pedestrian site access and circulation 
• Accurate sidewalk, boulevard, curb, and driveway apron on streets, as established by civil engineering, for reference and coordination 
• Simple landscape information including the extent of hard and softscape areas, curbs, steps and ramps, fences and gates; but not details like paving patterns, planting schemes, etc. (use a line weight lighter than the building outline or property line for this information) 
• Phasing plan (if phasing is proposed) 
• Location of indoor/outdoor amenity, including a hatched or dashed line to indicate the area included within the outdoor amenity calculation 
• Identify environmental and geotechnical features 

Fire access plan: 

• Refer to the Fire Department Site Plan Requirements for Land Development Applications
• Identify primary fire access entry(s) 
• Dimension fire access routes 
• Identify fire hydrant location 
• Identify turning radii for all fire truck movements 
• Identify stair access to above and below levels 

Floor plans: 

• All levels 
• Include retained trees and tree protection zone on ground floor and parking levels 
• Include property line setback dimensions 
• Overall building dimensions
• Step-back dimensions from property line
• Dashed line of floors above at perimeter if different
• Gridlines

Roof plan: 

• Identify proposed roofing finish (i.e., vegetated green or high-albedo roofing, patio surface, SRI value etc.) 
• Dimension area for mechanical equipment enclosure 

Elevations (required for all sites): 

• All elevations of all buildings including internal (or courtyard) elevations 
• Provide a site key plan indicating the location of each elevation 
• Label building elevations relative to North, South, East, and West, noting street names, where applicable, in parenthesis (i.e., North Elevation (104 Avenue)) 
• Include doors, windows, material legend, and keyed material tags 
• Show the grade line at the property line in a clear, heavy line 
• Include the property line and setbacks where proximate 
• Do not include landscape. Separate landscape elevations may be provided 
• Identify measures to shield and mitigate noise generated from road traffic or transit infrastructure (where Acoustical Report required) 
• Exterior lighting 
• 3-dimensional massing illustrations are encouraged 
• Gridlines
• Include the property line with reference label and setbacks where proximate

Streetscape elevations:  

• Scaled drawing including elevations of all buildings, including the subject site, for the full block of each street the project faces 
• For towers: show additional ground level/podium elevations at a larger scale to show ground interface details 
• Label each subject building when there are multiple on site

Detailed public realm sections:  

• At key public realm interface – entries, townhouse and commercial unit interfaces, commercial unit, plazas etc. 
• Enlarged scale section of ground and second levels 
• Include:
  • Sidewalk, boulevard, curb as established by civil engineering
  • Property line and setbacks
  • Dimensioned canopies, balconies, soffits, ventilation grilles, fences, privacy screens, signs etc.
  • Material labels and notes, in particular, soffits 

Sections: 

• Provide at least: two North-South sections and two East-West sections.  
  • If the site is large, has steep slopes, or complicated grading please provide more than the minimum four sections 
• Sections are to extend past the PL, showing context, on shared PL show neighbouring building, on external PL, show curb
• Show grading information

Shadow studies (required for buildings 6 storeys and taller):  

• 10am, noon, and 2pm at the Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice 
• Include a clear orthomap below the shadows to clearly indicate the impact 
• When other building shadows are shown, distinguish the subject shadows in a different colour 
• Show surrounding neighbours

• For requirements, see Landscape Plans for Land Development

• Proposed storm, sanitary, and water connections with inspection chambers and meters 

• Dimensioned road dedication 

• Location of sidewalk, multi-use pathways, right-of-ways, and easements 

• Culverts and ditches 

• Proposed driveway crossings 

• Proposed on-site driveway grades coordinated with the architectural and landscape plans 

• Irrigation systems, hard landscaping 

• Hydro, telephone, gas services (overhead and underground) 

• Scale drawing to 1:500 or 1:1000 

• Legend including all symbols and elevation formats shown on the plan 

• North arrow 

• Existing and proposed street names within and bordering the proposed development 

• Lot numbers, plan numbers or municipal addresses 

• All existing and proposed easements and rights-of-way 

• All elevations shall refer to geodetic metric datum 

• Existing contours to be shown at a maximum interval of 1.0 metres and shall extend beyond the limits of the property/development 

• Location of catch basins, maintenance holes, hydrants, valves, streetlights, transformers, telephone pedestals, sidewalk walkways, mailboxes, and hydro poles 

• Defined limits of tree preservation in accordance with the Tree Preservation Plans 

• Location of existing and proposed buildings, including those on adjacent lands 

• Proposed and existing elevations at property corners 

• Intermediate grade change points 

• Direction of flow on lot lines 

• Any underground drainage must be identified 

• Identify on lots where fill has been placed or will be placed 

• Indicate direction of flow for surface water runoff for all lots and roadways 

• Location and grade of swales 

• Location of watercourses and drainage ditches 

• Typical grading cross-sections for all distinct lot drainage and configurations 

• Location of existing and/or proposed retaining walls, including top and bottom elevations 

• Location of existing and/or proposed septic, including dimension for septic locations 

• Entrance locations to the property and adjoining properties as well as those on opposite side of roadways 

• 3 copies of executed Form P document consistent with Development Permit
• 3 copies of phasing plan consistent with Development Permit 

For more information, contact SubdivisionE-Files@surrey.ca. 

The arborist report assesses the overall health and quality of the trees on or adjacent to the subject site. 

• For requirements, see Trees & Landscape: Land Development Requirements

Review Area 3: Sensitive Ecosystems Development Permit Area for requirements for ecosystem development plans

• Introduction
  • Summary of proposed development
  • Name of geotechnical engineer and consulting firm, address, email, and phone number 
• Site description 
• Field investigation 
• Subsurface conditions
  • Soil conditions
  • Groundwater conditions 
• Discussion and recommendations
  • Describe the proposal
  • Foundations
  • Drainage
  • Excavations
  • Landscaping and vegetation
  • Construction 
• Closure
  • Geotechnical Engineer’s full name
  • Signature and seal
  • If report author is not certified, include information as above for the Geotechnical Engineer overseeing the work and reviewing the report, as well as credentials held by the report author, their full name, and signature/seal 
• Appendices
  • Site plan illustrating geotechnical setback line
  • Landslide Assessment Assurance Statement
  • Copy of the company insurance policy
  • Test hole logs
  • Slope stability analysis 

• Transportation Impact Assessments (TIA) are required at the City’s discretion, but typically are needed when thresholds, as outlined in the Engineering Design Criteria Manual, are met
• Applicant to obtain a terms of reference from City staff before preparing a TIA