CANMORE – A community standards bylaw was approved for the first time in Canmore.
The bylaw consolidates several existing municipal bylaws into one document to aid in enforcement requirements under the Municipal Government Act (MGA) as well as being an easy-to-find document for residents.
“It is good to have it in one place, so people don’t have to be jumping around trying to figure out where cleaning sidewalks is versus wildlife attractants versus noise – and it is something many municipalities are doing,” said Canmore Mayor Sean Krausert. “Just because others are doing it doesn’t make it right, but in this case, I believe it is. We will continue to evolve over time.”
Among the policies now combined is the noise bylaw, sections of the traffic and road use bylaw, wildlife attractant bylaw and the recent council motion that would ban the planting of new fruit-bearing vegetation in town.
The fruit-bearing aspect restricts new fruit-producing trees and bushes from being planted, but it allows existing ones to remain.
“New fruit bearing vegetation that are wildlife attractants will not be allowed to be planted within Canmore," said Caitlin Miller, the Town’s manager of protective services. "The enactment of this bylaw is that fruit is not allowed to accumulate on existing trees and bushes, but new fruit-bearing vegetation will also not be allowed."
Miller noted the Biosphere Institute of the Bow Valley has a free tool lending library such as fruit pickers to remove fruit from trees to deter wildlife from entering town.
“Fruit is ripening, so now’s the time to make sure it’s removed so the bears and our community are kept safe,” Miller said.
A staff report to council highlighted the bylaw aligns with council’s recently approved strategic plan to help improve safety, manage human impact on the environment and support respectful relationships.
The report noted several municipalities have shifted from having multiple individual bylaws to having a more encompassing community standards bylaw.
Miller said municipal enforcement encourages people to talk to their neighbours prior to complaining and people should “be a good neighbour.” Anonymous complaints are not accepted since they may have to go to court where witness statements are relied upon.
The Town’s noise bylaw is from 1997, and allows for noise of no more than 60 decibels at night in residential districts. Most noise complaints, according to the report, come after 11 p.m. The municipal enforcement department would also buy a decibel reader for roughly $750.
The RCMP doesn't have decibel readers and while there was discussion on adding it, Miller said it wasn’t recommended since it would require another piece of technology for officers to be trained on.
She said RCMP only takes noise complaints when municipal enforcement is not staffed, which is about one or two complaints a week.
The community standards bylaw also shifts the snow and ice maintenance of sidewalks on private property from the traffic and road use bylaw.
The bylaw requires residents to do snow and ice removal within 48 hours of a snowfall, but discussion indicated consideration of possiblyly revisiting the timeline expectation.
“Beyond being a livable community, if you chose not to shovel your walk in a timely fashion, you are shoving middle finger in the face of seniors and disabled people,” Coun. Joanna McCallum said. “You’re holding these people hostage in their own homes if you don’t shovel, so two days seems like a lot to be held hostage in your own home when it has snowed outside.”
An emphasis is also placed on property maintenance and unsightly property that’s required by the MGA and establishes a definition for what should be expected. Wildlife attractants are also included in an attempt to further limit human-wildlife interaction in the community.
Graffiti, human waste and municipal enforcement to issue orders for an individual or property owner to take action were also included in the bylaw.
Public engagement was largely limited to talking to residents in areas that had frequent noise complaints, which allowed them to voice concerns, address the bylaw and provide feedback.
With the bylaw now in force, Town CAO Sally Caudill said the municipality expects to get feedback on what is and isn’t working in the community.
“As we continue to implement this new bylaw, we will continue to get feedback about where it is not appropriate, if we missed the mark or didn’t anticipate unintended consequences, so it’s possible now that the municipal enforcement is fully staffed that this bylaw could be back to council for tweaks,” she said.
“I think we’ll get better feedback through implementing it. … Trying to roll it out when it’s in the paper form as opposed to how people experience it on the ground and get feedback tends to be more effective.”
Coun. Tanya Foubert said the community standards bylaw allows for greater clarity for both enforcing the bylaws and clarity for residents.
“So when people call us to come and help them with something they don’t feel is meeting the standard of living in their community, we have some clear guidelines to help resolve those situations,” she said.
