6929 Veyaness Road

A temporary use permit is under consideration for the Dheenshaw family farm at 6929 Veyaness Road, operating as Gobind Farms. The application is at the referral stage this month, with council asked to send it to the Advisory Planning Commission and Peninsula & Area Agricultural Commission, and to schedule an opportunity for public input at a future meeting. The permit would allow a time-limited non-farming use on agricultural land reserve property, subject to Agricultural Land Commission approval. The application sits at the intersection of two intensifying policy pressures in Central Saanich: the need to support existing farm operations through diversified revenue streams, and the protection of ALR land from uses that erode agricultural capacity. Temporary use permits on ALR land are a relatively rare tool — typically sought for farm markets, seasonal events, or agri-tourism structures — and the outcome will be closely watched by other Peninsula farms considering similar diversification. The referral to the Peninsula & Area Agricultural Commission, not just the APC, signals that the agricultural impact is the primary lens. The timeline is early. Referral review and the opportunity to be heard will likely take two to three months, followed by a council decision on whether to issue the permit, then a separate ALC approval process that adds another three to six months of uncertainty. No correspondence or public input has been recorded to date; the absence of opposition at this stage is common for farm diversification applications but could shift once the hearing date is set. The permit, if granted, will be time-bound and conditioned to prevent permanent intensification of non-farm use on the parcel. Any development work beyond minor structures would require separate building permits, but the permit scope is not public yet.

A temporary use permit is under consideration for the Dheenshaw family farm at 6929 Veyaness Road, operating as Gobin…