What Is A1 Zoning in BC? Lot Sizes and Height Limits by City
A1 usually means a city's main agricultural zone, but the code is set by each municipality, not the province. Here is what A1 means in 13 BC cities, with the minimum lot area and height limit in each.
The short answer
- 13 BC cities in this comparison that use an A1 or A-1 zone
- 0.5 to 8 ha range of minimum lot areas in the A1 zones compared below
- 9 to 12 m range of maximum building heights where the bylaw sets one
In British Columbia, A1 is normally the zone a city uses for agricultural land. The letter stands for agriculture or agricultural, and the 1 is just the city's numbering for that district. There is no provincial A1 zone. Each municipality writes its own zoning bylaw, so A1 in Delta and A1 in Kelowna are two different zones with different lot sizes and rules.
Most A1 land is also inside the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR), which adds provincial rules on top of the zone. The zone tells you what the city allows. The ALR tells you what the Agricultural Land Commission allows. You need both to know what you can do with a lot.
A1 zoning by city
The table below lists the minimum lot area and the maximum building height ZoneScout reads from each city's zoning bylaw for its A1 (or A-1) district. A dash means the bylaw does not state a single figure for that zone in the form we record.
| City | Zone name | Minimum lot area | Maximum height |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abbotsford | Agricultural One | 8 ha | - |
| Burnaby | Agriculture District | 0.5 ha | 10.5 m |
| City of Langley | Agricultural | 2 ha | 10 m |
| Delta | Agriculture | 8 ha | - |
| Kamloops | Agricultural | 8 ha | - |
| Kelowna | Agriculture | 4 ha | 10 m |
| Lake Country | Agriculture 1 | 3.8 ha | 9.5 m |
| Maple Ridge (A-1) | Small Holding Agricultural | 2 ha | 9.5 m |
| Peachland | Agricultural (ALR) | 2 ha | 9.1 m |
| Port Moody | Acreage Reserve | 8 ha | 10.5 m |
| Summerland | Agricultural Small Acreage | 2 ha | 9.5 m |
| Surrey (A-1) | General Agriculture | - | 9 m |
| West Kelowna | Agricultural | 4 ha | 12 m |
Abbotsford A1 · Burnaby A1 · Delta A1 · Kelowna A1 · Lake Country A1 · Maple Ridge A-1 · Surrey A-1
Why the same code means different things
A1 in Burnaby sets a 0.5 ha minimum, while A1 in Delta, Abbotsford, Kamloops and Port Moody sets 8 ha. That is a sixteen-fold difference under the same two characters. The code is a label inside one city's bylaw, not a standard.
Port Moody is a good example of the label misleading: its A1 is called Acreage Reserve, and ZoneScout files it as residential rather than agricultural. Always read the zone name and the city together, never the code alone.
How the ALR changes things
If your A1 lot is in the ALR, the Agricultural Land Commission controls subdivision, non-farm use, and in many cases the size and number of homes. A city can allow something in its A1 zone that the ALC still restricts. When the two conflict, the stricter rule governs.
Whether a given lot is in the ALR is a separate lookup from its zone. A ZoneScout report flags ALR status for covered cities, so you can see both layers for one address.
Check your own lot
Zone codes on listings and old documents are often out of date, and cities have renamed or replaced districts, as Burnaby did when its new zoning bylaw took effect on July 1, 2026. Enter the address in ZoneScout to see the zone that applies to that lot today, with the rules for it.
Rural and acreage zones in BC compared · Second homes on ALR land in BC · What is RU1 zoning in BC?
Frequently asked questions
What does A1 zoning mean in BC?
A1 is usually a municipality's main agricultural zone. It is defined by each city's own zoning bylaw, so the minimum lot area, height limit and permitted uses differ from city to city.
Is A1 zoning the same as the Agricultural Land Reserve?
No. A1 is a municipal zone. The ALR is a separate provincial designation run by the Agricultural Land Commission. Many A1 lots are also in the ALR, and when both apply the stricter rule governs.
What is the minimum lot size for A1 zoning in BC?
It depends on the city. Among the cities compared here it ranges from 0.5 ha in Burnaby to 8 ha in Abbotsford, Delta, Kamloops and Port Moody.
How do I find out if my lot is zoned A1?
Search the address in ZoneScout. For covered BC cities it returns the zone in force for that lot, along with the rules that go with it.