BARRHEAD - County of Barrhead council is one step closer to enacting a new Community Standards Bylaw.
Councillors unanimously gave first reading to the bylaw in a 6-0 vote during their Oct. 1 meeting. Coun. Bill Lane was absent.
County manager Debbie Oyarzun said the bylaw was a long time in the coming, noting administration first started drafting the bylaw in 2017.
She added the purpose of the bylaw is to give the municipality the mechanism to deal with complaints from residents about what they believe is unneighbourly behaviour.
Oyarzun also said the bylaw also consolidates and modernizes several other bylaws, absorbing them into the new document, including the Noise and Pollution, Unsightly Premises and Unsightly Premises Amending bylaws, making them redundant, noting the documents would be rescinded with the passage of the proposed bylaw.
"The bylaw also includes emerging issues such as cannabis use [in public areas] and gives us the mechanism to address, and puts everything in one place, in hopes that it will better address neighbour concerns and enforce any issues as needed," she said.
Oyarzun added that the bylaw was drafted using the general input, comments, and complaints from residents, administration, and council.
She also noted that a public hearing was not required, so councillors could pass the bylaw in three straight readings or give it first and/or second reading, delaying third reading, "giving it time to sit," and allowing the public to submit general, informal feedback.
"I don't think a formal public hearing is needed as we've heard [the public's] concerns over the years through budget open houses and the like," Oyarzun said.
Community peace officer Shae Guy then walked councillors through the document, saying the first three sections defined the purpose of the bylaw and clarified 26 standard definitions, while Section 4 deals with unsightly or unsafe properties and Section 5 concentrates on tree and other vegetation issues impacting utility work or safety. Section 6 defines the CPO's inspection authority and powers.
The following two sections deal with vehicle and noise complaints.
Specifically, Section 7 on vehicles regulates parking, most notably for school buses by property size, while Section 8 most notable feature is the standardizing of quiet hours from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Section 9 outlines and defines nuisance-type events, such as public fighting, urinating or defecation and directing or pumping water onto property that isn't theirs.
The next three sections deal with cannabis-related complaints, littering and snow removal, while Sections 13 and 14 outline the enforcement procedure for issuing an "Order to Remedy" under Alberta's Municipal Government Act (MGA), the appeal process and describes what discretion the CPO has in enforcing the bylaw.
Guy also touched on a few definitions, including what constitutes "junked or wrecked" vehicles.
A junked car is a vehicle determined not to be in a roadworthy state. It is not in a building or other location on the property as to conceal it from view, while a wrecked vehicle is "wrecked" or disassembled state, whether it is in part or in whole, inoperative, unregistered or in abandoned condition for at least 14 days.
Coun. Walter Preugschas said that while he agreed with the concept definition, he wanted to ensure that residents who had a wrecked vehicle on their properties for decoration as part of their landscape were not penalized.
"We needed to include this definition because we get properties that collect pieces of [garbage vehicles] and don't want to get rid of them. This is different than a farm with three or four vehicles lined up," Guy said.
He added that although agricultural properties were not exempt from the bylaw, it is something he would consider when it comes to enforcement.
"The other thing to remember is that everything is complaint-based. We are not going around looking for old vehicles on properties," Guy said. "We also have to consider the zoning of the land. So if it is ag, we would have a different conversation than someone in [the hamlets of] Manola or Neerlandia. Certainly, people have those there, but that is not the bylaw's purpose."
Guy then went into more detail when he or other municipal staff members and county contractors could go onto residents' properties to inspect or investigate complaints.
"The bylaw allows us and our contractors to enter and inspect a property; the only exception is that we can't enter a dwelling house or an actual home. For that, we would need a warrant," he said, adding that, for the most part, they can enter a property at their discretion.
Guy and Oyarzun noted that in the case of a more formal property or weed inspection, the municipality generally gives the resident 24-hour notice.
"But we are not required to," Guy said. "It depends on the level of cooperation. And it is not like I am just going to go on to the property and start roaming around. I am going to first talk to the landowner and walk through the property with them."
Coun. Jared Stoik brought up a concern that the bylaw prohibits people from clearing snow off their driveways and pushing it onto roadways. Specifically, his concern was prohibiting snow from being pushed onto Range and Township Roads.
Related link: County of Barrhead resident concerned about people clearing snow onto roadways
"I know it is going to be complaint-driven. It seems ridiculous to me that you can't push snow over onto the roadway," Stoik said. "If you are creating big berms, I get it. But if you are pushing snow into the ditch and you are not obstructing the road or making a mess, I don't see an issue."
Infrastructure director Ken Hove said the issue is that often when clearing snow, residents won't push it entirely off the roadway into the opposite ditch.
"What you get is a frozen snowbank that sits on the shoulder of the road that becomes hard. People run into it, causing damage to their vehicles. It is also a safety issue where it could potentially cause an accident," he said.
Hove added that clearing snow could also be a problem for the county's graders as it can also potentially create ridges on the road top.
Guy also noted that is why the bylaw allows for CPO discretion in charging residents, agreeing with Stoik if residents are clearing their snow in a responsible way which doesn't impact traffic safety, residents wouldn't receive a ticket.
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
