South Okanagan

Custom Homes & Custom Decks in Summerland, BC

Orchard and vineyard country, where the Agricultural Land Reserve decides more about your build than the zoning does.

Building in Summerland

What a Summerland build actually involves

Summerland is the furthest south we build and the only one of our service areas outside the Central Okanagan. It sits in the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen, under a different district government, with a land base dominated by orchard and vineyard. That last part is what makes a Summerland build different from anything in Kelowna or West Kelowna.

A large share of Summerland parcels sit inside the Agricultural Land Reserve, and the ALR overrides the local zoning on what you can put on the land. Plenty of people have designed a carriage house for an orchard property before finding that out. It is the first thing we check here and it takes one look at the parcel.

Local Rules

What the rules allow in Summerland

The District of Summerland sets what can go on your parcel. These are the points that most often change a design, and they are worth knowing before you pay anyone to draw something.

No carriage house on ALR land

This is the rule that decides most Summerland projects. Carriage houses are not permitted on properties inside the Agricultural Land Reserve, because the Agricultural Land Commission does not allow them there. Secondary suites, on the other hand, are permitted in the ALR. If your parcel is ALR and you want a second dwelling, the answer is a suite inside the house, not a detached building in the yard.

A carriage house is capped at 90 m²

Where a carriage house is permitted, Summerland defines it as a secondary dwelling constructed in an accessory building with up to 90 m² (about 970 sq ft) of floor area. That is a genuinely workable size for the EcoHome design, which is built around getting real living space out of a small footprint.

Carriage houses are allowed in urban and rural residential zones

Summerland council made the zoning changes permitting carriage houses in urban and rural residential zones back in early 2019, and has continued to revisit the rules as provincial housing legislation and Agricultural Land Commission policy have shifted. Because this is an area of active change, confirm the current position before you design.

Bylaws change and every parcel is different. Treat the above as a starting point, confirm the current rule with the District of Summerland before you commit to a design, or call us and we will confirm it for your address.

Site Conditions

Building conditions on a Summerland lot

Summerland is not listed as its own row in the BC Building Code Appendix C climatic data table, so structural design values come from the nearest published station adjusted for your parcel’s elevation. Summerland ranges from Trout Creek near lake level up through the benches and into Prairie Valley, which is a wide enough spread that the adjustment is real.

Agricultural land brings its own site conditions. Irrigation lines, established root systems and historic orchard grading all affect where a building can practically go and what the excavation actually looks like. On a working orchard or vineyard, siting is as much about not wrecking the operation as it is about setbacks.

Being the furthest of our service areas from West Kelowna, we schedule Summerland work in blocks rather than trickling crews down the valley. It makes the build tighter and it keeps the travel out of your invoice. It also means our lead time here can differ from the Central Okanagan, and we will tell you what it is when you call.

Summerland also sits far enough south that the growing season, the sun exposure and the summer heat load are noticeably different from the Central Okanagan. That shows up in glazing decisions, in shading and in how a deck is oriented. A layout that works beautifully in Lake Country can cook in a Trout Creek afternoon if nobody thought about the aspect.

What We Build

Two services in Summerland

EcoHaven Homes custom home exterior, the EcoHome built in Summerland

Custom Homes

The EcoHome, built on your Summerland lot. Ample space in a small footprint, which works as a rental property, an in-law suite or a downsizing home. Permits handled first, budget split across six phases.

Custom Decks

New builds, repairs and upgrades across Summerland. Designed to match the house it attaches to and framed for the snow and sun this specific site takes, not a generic valley average.

Areas we build in

If your neighbourhood is not on this list it does not mean we will not come. Call and ask.

Trout Creek Prairie Valley Downtown Summerland Garnet Valley Deer Ridge Jones Flat

Summerland FAQ

Questions we get from Summerland

If the property is in the Agricultural Land Reserve, no. Carriage houses are not permitted on ALR land because the Agricultural Land Commission does not allow them. A secondary suite inside the existing house is permitted in the ALR, and that is usually the route on an orchard or vineyard parcel.

Where permitted, Summerland defines a carriage house as a secondary dwelling in an accessory building with up to 90 m² (about 970 sq ft) of floor area. That works well with the EcoHome, which is designed around getting full living space into a small footprint.

No. Summerland is in the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen and is governed by the District of Summerland, while our Central Okanagan service areas sit in the Regional District of Central Okanagan. Different authority, different process.

We schedule Summerland work in blocks rather than running crews down the valley daily, which keeps travel out of your invoice. Lead times can differ from the Central Okanagan and we will be straight with you about what ours is when you call.

We also build in

West Kelowna Kelowna Lake Country Peachland

Find out what your Summerland lot supports

A free consultation gets you a straight answer on zoning, siting and what the build would realistically cost, in writing. No pressure.

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