Illicit secondary suites in Edmonton duplexes could become legal

City councillors want to legalize potentially thousands of illegal secondary suites, which have been operating rogue in the city.

Duplex ownersare not permittedto leasebasement suites in Edmonton, though it'scommon in many other municipalities across Canada.

It's difficultto say how many duplexes contain basement suites in Edmonton since they are not issuedpermits.

Coun. Bev Esslinger said she became aware of the problem when she was contacted bypeople tryingto make changes to their suites, only to discover the units were illegal and they would have to evict their tenants.

To make matters worse, the duplexowners were already paying taxes onthe basement suites.

"They thought that everybody knew they had the suite because they had paid for it, but the assessment department hadn't talked to the permitting department," Esslinger said. "We're working on that."

The city is currently investigating about 150 illegal duplex suites. Councillors opted to look at bylaw amendments to legalize the units, rather than crack down on them.

"By making them legal we can ensure they're safe," Esslinger said.

Legalizing the suites could also help the city meet its density and affordability targets in the core, she said.

"I think it's really important to provide as many choices for the citizens as possible."

Allowing secondary suites in duplexes will likely be popular in new developments as well, saidDerekHiltz,with the Canadian Home Builders' Association.

"We find homeowners are using the suites option to qualify for their mortgage," he said.

City staff will prepare amendments to the bylaw and present them to councillorsat the end of the year.The public will get a chance to weigh in before the changes become legal.