An independent local reference

Understand North Vancouver.

Practical guides to how North Vancouver actually works.

North Vancouver is split between different municipalities, agencies and public bodies.

NVAN helps you figure out who is responsible, where to look, and what the official information actually means.

Start with these

Know which part of the system you need.

City of North Vancouver vs. District of North Vancouver

They are two separate municipalities.

They have different councils, bylaws, budgets, planning departments and municipal services.

If you live in North Vancouver, knowing which municipality you are in affects where you look for things like:

property taxes;
garbage and recycling;
permits;
development applications;
local bylaws;
council decisions.

→ Understand City vs. District

Who is responsible for what?

Not every local service belongs to your municipality.

Here is the basic map:

→ See the full guide

The basic map

Who is responsible for what?

Question	Start here
Local roads, permits, bylaws	City or District
Buses and SeaBus	TransLink
Public schools and catchments	North Vancouver School District
Recreation centres and programs	North Vancouver Recreation & Culture
Regional water, sewer and some infrastructure	Metro Vancouver
Provincial highways and provincial rules	Province of BC

→ See the full guide

Sources: City of North Vancouver, District of North Vancouver, TransLink, SD44, NVRC and Metro Vancouver.

If something is being built near you

A sign goes up on a property. What does it actually mean?

A project may involve several different steps, such as:

a development application;
zoning or an OCP change;
municipal review;
public input, where required;
development permits;
building permits;
construction.

These steps are not the same thing.

An application being submitted does not necessarily mean construction has been approved.

→ How development works in North Vancouver → How to research a development near your home

If you don't know where to look

Start with the subject.

Property taxes

Property taxes are collected locally, but the amount on your tax notice can include levies for more than one public body.

→ How property taxes work

Schools

North Vancouver School District uses school catchment areas.

You can use its official School Locator to check which school serves an address.

Official tool:https://www.sd44.ca/schools/school-locator/

Recreation

North Vancouver Recreation & Culture provides recreation, sport, arts and cultural services for both the City and District.

Official site:https://www.nvrc.ca/

Transit

TransLink operates buses, RapidBus and SeaBus serving the North Shore.

Official schedules:https://www.translink.ca/schedules-and-maps/schedules-by-region

Quick links

Go straight to the official source.

City of North Vancouver

Official website:
https://www.cnv.org/

Use it for City-specific information such as:

City bylaws;
City property taxes;
City development applications;
permits;
City council;
City services.

District of North Vancouver

Official website:
https://www.dnv.org/

Use it for District-specific information such as:

District bylaws;
District property taxes;
District development and planning;
permits;
District council;
District services.

North Vancouver School District

https://www.sd44.ca/

Useful for:

school registration;
catchments;
School Locator;
district schools.

North Vancouver Recreation & Culture

https://www.nvrc.ca/

Useful for:

recreation centres;
swimming;
fitness;
skating;
arts and cultural programs;
program registration.

TransLink

https://www.translink.ca/

Useful for:

buses;
SeaBus;
RapidBus;
trip planning;
schedules.

Metro Vancouver

https://metrovancouver.org/

Useful for understanding regional services and infrastructure shared across municipalities.

What NVAN does

Official information already exists.

The difficult part is often knowing:

which organization has the answer;
which jurisdiction applies;
what a government term means;
whether two similar-looking processes are actually different;
and where the original source is.

NVAN organizes those answers into practical guides.

Every guide should tell you:

What it means
Who is responsible
Where the official information lives
What can change
When the page was last checked

About NVAN

An independent reference for understanding North Vancouver.

NVAN is an independent reference for understanding North Vancouver.

It is not a government website and does not replace official sources.

When rules, fees, deadlines or requirements matter, NVAN links you back to the relevant official source.

Last reviewed: September 2026