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Zoning · Hamilton · Mixed use

C5 zone, Hamilton: Mixed Use Medium Density (C5) Zone

Section 10.5 (Sections 10.5.1 to 10.5.11) of the City of Hamilton Zoning By-law 05-200, as amended by 17-240, 17-240-OLT-05, 19-062, 24-137, 25-075, 25-155, 26-016.

A commercial main-street zone along collector and arterial roads that allows shops, restaurants, offices, services and entertainment, with apartments permitted above or alongside them, in buildings pulled up close to the sidewalk.

Is a property in the C5 zone? Enter its address and the lookup returns the zone and these standards, including any site-specific exception.

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What the C5 zone permits

  • Artist Studio
  • Beverage Making Establishment
  • Catering Service
  • Child Care Centre
  • Commercial Entertainment
  • Commercial Parking Facility
  • Commercial Recreation
  • Commercial School
  • Communications Establishment
  • Conference or Convention Centre
  • Craftsperson Shop
  • Dwelling Unit, Mixed Use
  • Educational Establishment
  • Emergency Shelter
  • Financial Establishment
  • Funeral Home
  • Hotel
  • Laboratory
  • Lodging House
  • Medical Clinic
  • Microbrewery
  • Motor Vehicle Gas Bar
  • Motor Vehicle Service Station
  • Motor Vehicle Washing Establishment
  • Multiple Dwelling
  • Office
  • Performing Arts Theatre
  • Personal Service
  • Place of Assembly
  • Place of Worship
  • Repair Service
  • Residential Care Facility
  • Restaurant
  • Retail
  • Retirement Home
  • Self Storage Facility
  • Social Services Establishment
  • Tradesperson's Shop
  • Transportation Depot
  • Urban Farmers Market
  • Veterinary Service

Standards

RequirementBy-law
Minimum front yardSee noteBuilding setback from a street line (10.5.3 a): minimum 3.0 m only for a building with residential units on the ground floor facing a street; otherwise no minimum stated. Maximum 4.5 m (except where a visibility triangle is required for a driveway access); maximum 6.0 m for the portion of a building providing an access driveway to a garage. The 4.5 m maximum does not apply to any portion of a building exceeding the facade-width requirement of 10.5.3 g) ii)/iii). Gas bars/service stations: minimum 4.5 m abutting a street (10.5.5 a).
Minimum interior side yardSee note7.5 m where abutting a Residential or Institutional Zone or a lot containing a residential use (10.5.3 c); no interior side yard stated otherwise. Emergency Shelter, Lodging House, Place of Worship, Residential Care Facility, Retirement Home, Social Services Establishment: 7.5 m side yard in all cases (10.5.4 a).
Minimum exterior side yardSee noteNot separately stated; the street-line building setback of 10.5.3 a) (min 3.0 m if residential units on ground floor facing the street, max 4.5 m) applies to any lot line abutting a street, and on a corner lot where the rear lot line abuts a street the street-line setback applies instead of the rear yard (10.5.3 b) ii).
Minimum rear yard7.5 m7.5 m (10.5.3 b). On a corner lot where the rear lot line abuts a street, the street-line setback of 10.5.3 a) applies instead. Emergency Shelter, Lodging House, Place of Worship, Residential Care Facility, Retirement Home, Social Services Establishment: minimum side and rear yard 7.5 m (10.5.4 a).
Maximum building height22 mMaximum 22.0 m (10.5.3 d) ii); also 22.0 m for Emergency Shelter, Lodging House, Place of Worship, Residential Care Facility, Retirement Home and Social Services Establishment under 10.5.4 b). Minimum 7.5 m facade height for any portion of a building along a street line (10.5.3 d) i); for new commercial buildings in existing commercial development exempted under 10.5.3 g) v), that facade-height rule is replaced by a minimum building height of 6.0 m. Height above 11.0 m may be increased equivalently as the rear/interior side yard increases beyond the minimum required by 10.5.3 b) and c) when abutting a Residential or Institutional Zone, to a maximum of 22.0 m. Rooftop amenity enclosures/access may project up to 3.0 m above the uppermost point of the building if their floor area is at most 10% of the storey directly beneath and they are set back at least 3.0 m from its exterior walls.
Minimum landscaped open spaceSee note10% of total lot area only for Emergency Shelter, Lodging House, Place of Worship, Residential Care Facility, Retirement Home and Social Services Establishment (10.5.4 c); no landscaped area minimum stated for other uses.
Maximum gross floor areaSee noteUse-specific: Office building 4,000.0 m2 per individual building (10.5.3 e); Microbrewery 700.0 m2 (10.5.3 f); accessory retail to a Motor Vehicle Gas Bar 175.0 m2 (10.5.5 d); new commercial buildings exempted from the facade-width rule under 10.5.3 g) v) 650 m2 each. No general maximum for other uses.

Other provisions in this section

  • Finished floor elevation of any dwelling unit must be at least 0.9 m above grade, except dwelling units are permitted in a basement or cellar (10.5.1.1 i).
  • Residential Care Facility maximum capacity 50 residents (10.5.1.1 ii).
  • Emergency Shelter or Residential Care Facility must be on a lot at least 300 m (radial, lot line to lot line) from any other lot occupied by a Residential Care Facility, Emergency Shelter, Corrections Residence or Correctional Facility; an existing facility closer than 300 m may be expanded or redeveloped only up to the number of residents permitted by its zone (10.5.1.1 iii).
  • Self Storage Facility: not permitted on the ground floor except for access, loading, utility areas and accessory retail and office; for any building or portion subject to the facade-width requirements of 10.5.3 g) ii)/iii), at most 50% of the width of the ground floor facade facing a street line may be occupied by self storage; for a building where no portion is subject to Section 10.5.3 a) ii) (the maximum 4.5 m street-line setback), individual storage units may occupy up to 40% of the ground floor area; except for an access driveway, no direct access to internal parking/loading along the ground floor facade facing the front lot line; direct vehicular access to storage units prohibited (10.5.1.1 iv).
  • Prohibited uses: Community Garden, Garden Centre and Urban Farm are prohibited except as an accessory use to another permitted use; Motor Vehicle Dealership prohibited even as an accessory use (10.5.2).
  • Built form for new buildings and additions (10.5.3 g): rooftop mechanical equipment located and/or screened from view of any abutting street; interior or through lot: ground floor facade facing the front lot line must be at least 40% of the front lot line length; corner lot: combined ground floor facade facing street lines must be at least 50% of all lot lines abutting a street; facade width excludes access driveways and any required yards within a lot line abutting a street.
  • Existing commercial development: new commercial buildings are exempt from the facade-width rule (10.5.3 g) ii)/iii)) if each building is at most 650 m2 gross floor area and, notwithstanding the 7.5 m minimum facade height, the minimum building height is 6.0 m (10.5.3 g) v).
  • No parking, stacking lanes or aisles between the required building facade and the front lot line and flankage lot line, except for portions of a building exceeding the facade-width requirement of 10.5.3 g) ii)/iii) (10.5.3 g) vi).
  • At least one principal entrance within the ground floor facade that is set back closest to a street, accessible from the building facade with direct access from the public sidewalk (10.5.3 g) vii).
  • A walkway is permitted in a Planting Strip where one is required by the By-law (10.5.3 g) viii); for properties designated under the Ontario Heritage Act, alternative building design or materials approved through a Heritage Permit are deemed to comply (10.5.3 g) ix).
  • Minimum amenity area on a lot with 10 or more dwelling units: 4.0 m2 per dwelling unit of 50 m2 gross floor area or less, and 6.0 m2 per dwelling unit greater than 50 m2; outdoor amenity area must be unobstructed, at or above the surface, and exposed to light and air (10.5.3 h).
  • Minimum 1.5 m wide planting strip where a property lot line abuts a lot line in a Residential or Institutional Zone and not a Laneway (10.5.3 i); gas bars/service stations require a 3.0 m planting strip abutting any street line or Residential/Institutional Zone lot line except at ingress/egress points (10.5.5 c).
  • Visual barrier required along any lot line abutting a Residential Zone, Institutional Zone or Downtown (D5) Zone line per Section 4.19 (10.5.3 j).
  • No outdoor storage of goods, materials or equipment; display of goods or materials for retail purposes accessory to a Retail use permitted only in a front or flankage yard (10.5.3 k).
  • Motor Vehicle Gas Bar / Service Station: minimum 4.5 m yard abutting a street (notwithstanding 10.5.3 a) i) and ii)); fuel pump islands, pumps and canopies minimum 4.5 m from any lot line; accessory retail maximum 175.0 m2 (10.5.5).
  • Legally existing single detached and duplex dwellings (Section 4.12 f) and s. 34(10) Planning Act): an addition or alteration increasing interior volume/size is permitted up to 10% of the gross floor area existing at the date of passing of the by-law; the maximum street-line setbacks (10.5.3 a) ii) and iii)) and the minimum facade height (10.5.3 d) i)) do not apply; existing side yard setbacks must be maintained for the addition (10.5.6).
  • Accessory buildings per Section 4.8 (10.5.7); parking per Section 5 (10.5.8); Urban Farm (Section 4.26) and Community Garden (Section 4.27) only in the rear yard or on the roof-top of the principal building (10.5.9, 10.5.10); Urban Farmers Market per Section 4.28 (10.5.11).

Source: Section 10.5 (Sections 10.5.1 to 10.5.11), By-law 05-200 (City of Hamilton), checked 2026-09-12. General provisions elsewhere in the by-law (parking, driveways, accessory buildings) also apply, and a numbered exception on the parcel can change any value here. Treat this as a pre-check, not a sign-off.

Other mixed use zones in Hamilton: C4, C5a, D1, D2, D3, D5, TOC1, TOC4, WF1, WF2, WF3