"Council will host the Public Hearing regarding the Draft Rural Plan on the date chosen by Council, at some point this summer." That was the timeline Don Ferguson, Supervisor of Sunbury-York South, gave in an April 20, 2026 statement on the Rural Plan.
Summer is over. On October 20, council's regular meeting agenda listed third readings of By-Law No. 2026-04 and By-Law No. 2026-05. Both amend the Rusagonis-Waasis Rural Plan Regulation, the older rulebook the new plan is supposed to replace. Nothing on that agenda sets a hearing date or a reading for the consolidated plan.
If you're looking at land in Waasis because you have plans for it, like a couple of horses, a small suite for a parent, or a shop out back, this is the part that matters. The draft is friendlier to several of those plans than the current rules are. Until the draft is adopted, the current rules are the ones that apply to the lot you're about to buy.
Summer Came and Went on the Old Regulation
Sunbury-York South became a Rural Community on January 1, 2023. It pulled together parts of the former Local Service Districts of New Maryland and Rusagonis-Waasis, plus small pieces of the Tracyville-Three Tree Creek Planning Area. It includes Rusagonis, Waasis, Nasonworth, Beaver Dam, and Charters Settlement. Those areas came in with their own planning rules, and Waasis still runs on the Rusagonis-Waasis regulation.
GEMTEC Consulting Engineers and Scientists prepared the June 4, 2026 draft Rural Plan to cover the whole Rural Community under one by-law. Its own introduction says adopting it "coincides with the repeal of the former Rural Plans, which will no longer be in effect." Until that repeal happens, the old regulation stays in force. Council is still actively amending it.
You can see that on the calendar. Sunbury-York South posted notice of public hearings for Tuesday, August 18, 2026, at the Rusagonis Recreation Centre, 1609 Post Road. The municipal events listing labels them as rezoning hearings under the Rusagonis-Waasis regulation. The two amending by-laws then had readings on the September 15 agenda and third readings on October 20.
Here's the path the June 10 change summary and the April statement lay out between the draft and an adopted plan:
- The updated draft goes to provincial departments for review, and it gets revised again if their comments call for it. As of June 10, that circulation was already underway.
- Council sets a date for a public hearing on the final draft.
- The plan is posted for 30 days.
- Council gives it first, second, and third readings, and then it's adopted.
A buyer signing this fall is signing under the old regulation. The public hearing, the 30-day posting, and all three readings are still ahead.
Where the Two Rulebooks Split on Animals
Livestock is the one place where Sunbury-York South has published the old rule and the new rule side by side. That makes it the clearest example of how much the gap can change what a piece of land is worth to you.
The June 10, 2026 change summary lays it out like this:
| Current Rusagonis-Waasis Rural Plan | June 2026 draft Rural Plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Where livestock is allowed | R and R&C zones | Rural, Light Industrial, Heavy Industrial, and Resource and Conservation zones, as an agricultural use |
| Lot size | At least 20,000 square metres | The summary describes 1-acre, or 4,000 square metre, lots |
| How many animals | Up to 3 animal units | One or fewer animal units at the 20-metre setback, with larger setbacks as numbers rise |
| Lot-line setback | 20 metres | 20 metres for one or fewer units; 30 m for more than 1 to 4; 40 m for more than 4 to 6; 60 m for more than 6 to 10; 70 m for more than 10 to 19 |
| Other setbacks | 30 metres from any watercourse; 75 metres from any well or inhabited dwelling not on the property | Not listed in the summary's comparison |
Twenty thousand square metres is roughly five acres. Under the current rule, a family that wants a horse or two needs a parcel of about that size in the right zone. The draft points toward allowing one animal unit on a single acre. A buyer comparing a three-acre lot with a six-acre lot in Waasis today is comparing two parcels the current rules treat very differently. The draft would shrink that difference. The draft isn't law yet.
The draft also adds a separate, smaller category. It renames backyard keeping of certain animals a "backyard livestock operation," and it adds limited keeping of hens, ducks, and rabbits in the Serviced Residential zone. Class 1 home-based businesses would be allowed to sell products like eggs from backyard chickens. It also says outright that nothing in the plan restricts personal-use fruit, vegetable, or ornamental gardens, cutting trees for personal use, or selling surplus garden produce. Beekeepers get a new provision too, with a 10-metre setback from hives to any lot line.
The Draft's Other Changes Hinge on Two Words
Livestock is the easiest change to measure. Most of the draft's other changes come with a condition attached. They apply "where permitted," which means they depend on the zone the draft map gives a particular lot.
The draft uses nine zones: Rural, Residential One, Serviced Residential, Mini Home Park, Highway Commercial, Commercial, Light Industrial, Heavy Industrial, and Resource and Conservation. Which one a Waasis property lands in decides which of the rules below apply to it.
- A second home on the lot. Section 6.3 allows no more than one secondary dwelling unit per lot "where secondary dwelling units are permitted." On a lot with its own well and septic, the lot has to be at least 4,000 square metres. The unit has to sit in a side or rear yard, stay under 110 square metres of floor area, and have adequate sewage disposal. Section 6.7 separately limits a lot to one dwelling, with exceptions that include a permitted secondary unit.
- A business run from home. A Class 1 home-based business has to be secondary to living there, use no more than 30% of the dwelling's floor area, and generally can't be a restaurant or retail operation, with stated exceptions. A Class 2 business can operate from another building on the lot. That building is capped at 10% of the lot area or 240 square metres, whichever is less, and outdoor storage is limited to 250 square metres.
- Kennels. The minimum lot area drops from 20,000 to 10,000 square metres, and the lot-line setback drops from 60 to 30 metres. Any kennel within 60 metres of a property that permits a dwelling, a place of learning, or an early learning and childcare facility has to be screened by trees, hedges, or solid wooden fencing.
- How much of the lot you can build on. In the Residential One and Serviced Residential zones, allowable lot occupancy rises from 35% to 40%.
As a construction-minded REALTOR®, I look at that last item and see a garage, a workshop, or an addition that fits on paper under one set of rules and doesn't fit under the other. Each item on this list can add value to a parcel. Each one depends on a draft that still has a public hearing and three readings ahead of it.
Pricing a Waasis Parcel on the Rules in Force Today
If your plan for the property depends on something it allows, the questions to settle before you write an offer are about the current regulation. The draft gives you direction, and the current regulation tells you what you can actually do.
- Get the current zone for the specific property. Ask the Capital Region Service Commission, which provides planning services to Sunbury-York South, or the Rural Community office. Ask which zone the lot is in today and whether your planned use is allowed there.
- Check the lot area against the rule you're relying on. For livestock under the current Rusagonis-Waasis rule, that means the 20,000 square metre minimum and the 20-, 30-, and 75-metre setbacks in the table above.
- Look up the proposed zone too. The April statement said residents could see the proposed zoning for their own property and its permitted uses through the open house process. The draft documents are posted on the Rural Plan Update page.
- Price the property on what's allowed now. If the land only works for your plans once the draft is adopted, the timing of that adoption is part of what you're paying for.
- Plan the rest of the rural checklist alongside it. Well, septic, and insurance questions shape a rural purchase just as much. I've covered that side in the pre-listing stack for Rusagonis and what Hanwell asking prices don't show.
This is general information, not legal advice. Land-use rules are applied parcel by parcel, so please confirm what applies to a specific property with the planning authority and a real estate lawyer before you count on it.
Short FAQ
Does the new plan cover Rusagonis and the rest of Sunbury-York South too?
Yes. The draft says it applies to the entire Rural Community and repeals the former Rural Plans once it's adopted. The same timing question applies across Rusagonis and New Maryland's parish areas, not only Waasis.
Will there be a chance to comment before it's adopted?
The June 10 summary says the final draft will be presented at a public hearing where the community can comment. Council sets that date once the final draft is ready, and Sunbury-York South posts hearing notices on its website.
What else on the October 20 agenda touches Waasis?
Under unfinished business, the agenda listed a motion to have Sunbury-York South ask the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure's operational division to evaluate the Route 655 and Wilsey Road intersection. It also listed a motion on cellular service and the 2027 draft budget. For background on how the Rural Community's council got to where it is now, see what happened to Sunbury-York South's council.
If there's a Waasis parcel you're interested in and you already know what you want to do with it, bring me the plan along with the address. I'll help you line up the zoning questions, the lot measurements, and the well and septic checks before you set a price. That way your offer is based on what the land allows today. Reach out to Megan Gallant and let's talk.
