SO YOU WANT TO BUILD A DUAL OCCUPANCY? - City of Ryde

SO YOU WANT TO BUILD A DUAL
OCCUPANCY?
What is a dual occupancy building?
A “dual occupancy building” is a single building up to 2 storeys in height that contains not more than 2 dwellings:
(a) Which are attached to one another; and
(b) Each of which is designed so that its front door faces a street with which the allotment on
which the building is erected has a boundary.
What are the basic requirements for building a dual occupancy building?
Linear Separation
To ensure that dual occupancy and multi dwelling housing developments do not dominate the streetscape,
buildings in a Residential R2 zone must be separated from other dual occupancy, duplex and multi dwelling
housing developments.
The site for a proposed dual occupancy building development must be separated from other existing or proposed
dual occupancy or multi dwelling housing development by:
1. Twice the width of the frontage of the dual occupancy site; and
2. Twice the frontage of the nearest dual occupancy, villa or multi dwelling housing development
which ever is the greater distance.
For corner allotments the linear separation is as above with the exception of the street which contains the longest
street frontage. In thus case the separation distance is to be at least:
1. Twice the width of the shortest frontage of the corner allotment; or
2. Twice the frontage of the nearest dual occupancy, villa or multi dwelling housing development ;
which ever is the greater distance.
Diagram 1. - linear separation
Note - Linear separation does not apply:
1. where a public road/laneway separates the
allotments
2. for dual occupancies approved before 27
September 1995.
Anyone who is lodging or thinking of lodging an
application should investigate whether their site
complies with linear separation requirements. If written
confirmation of this is requested from Council, this is
to be done in writing and should be accompanied by
the applicable fee. (See Council’s Management Plan).
Applicants are advised to also check if there has been
a development application lodged with Council which is
pending determination.
Information Sheet Version Date Page
Dual Occupancy (attached) Final May 2011 1 of 2

Subdivision
SO YOU WANT TO BUILD A DUAL
OCCUPANCY?
Dual occupancy buildings cannot be subdivided (either by strata or Torrens title). This is a prohibited development
under the Ryde Local Environmental Plan 2010.
Other Requirements
Some of the requirements for a dual occupancy building are the same as that of a dwelling house,
with regards to:
� height,
� number of storeys,
� floor space ratio (FSR) and,
� setbacks.
Diagram 2. - typical dual occupancy design
There are a few differences, in that a maximum of two car parking spaces are required for a dual occupancy (one
per dwelling, located behind the building line). Also, whilst two ‘dwellings’ make up a dual occupancy, only one
deep soil zone, with a minimum measurement of 8m x 8m, is required, and does not have to be shared equally
with each ‘dwelling’.
Further Information
This information sheet provides a summary for Dual Occupancy (attached) Any person using this document must do so
with the understanding that the information is a guide only, and each application is assessed on its merit. For further details
in relation to Dual Occupancies (attached), refer to DCP 2010 Part 3.3 – Dwelling House & Dual Occupancy (attached).
Please note that a comprehensive list of the requirements for lodging a Development Application is available on Council’s
Website (www.ryde.nsw.gov.au) or at Council’s Customer Service Centre. Consultation should be undertaken with Council
staff prior to lodgement of any application. In certain circumstances, a formal prelodgement meeting with Council’s Building
& Development Advisory Service may be beneficial.
City Of Ryde
Ryde Planning and Business Centre
1 Pope Street RYDE
(cnr Pope and Devlin Streets, within Top Ryde
City Shopping Centre)
Office Hours:
9:00am to 5:00pm Monday to Friday
Website www.ryde.nsw.gov.au
Phone 9952 8222
Fax 9952 8070
Information Sheet Version Date Page
Dual Occupancy (attached) Final May 2011 2 of 2