Survey results showing the majority of Calgarians aren’t concerned about issues like fire pits and noise haven’t stopped a proposal for strict new rules and higher penalties from reaching city council, under a review of the Community Standards Bylaw.
The proposed changes, including mandatory spark guards for backyard fire pits and strict bass limits for outdoor music festivals, come in spite of a survey showing only 22 per cent of Calgarians consider fire pits to be a “very/somewhat significant issue”, and only 39 per cent feel that way about neighbourhood noise.
“The vast majority of people are getting along just fine, but there’s a minority who cause problems,” said Coun. Evan Woolley, vice-chair of the city’s Community and Protective Services committee.
“We need the tools to deal with those crappy neighbours, and these changes will tweak the bylaw to make that possible.”
The same telephone survey of 501 Calgarians, conducted between October and December 2015 by Nielsen Consumer Insights, shows 45 per cent of respondents deemed general upkeep of properties is very/somewhat significant, 34 per cent felt the same about weed and long grass, and 34 per cent measured graffiti in those terms.
Similar results gleaned through an open online survey has convinced city administration to recommenced the changes.
If approved by city council, all backyard fires must have a metal spark guard, while fines for too much smoke, burning after 1 a.m. and so forth are increasing from a minimum of $100 to $375, with the maximum penalty slated to climb from $500 to $750.
The bylaw overhaul also includes an anti-junk mail tweak that will make it illegal to deliver unaddressed non-commercial mail to homes with a “no junk mail” sign, though the new rule excludes newspapers and election flyers.
And 55 noise complaints centred on the Chasing Summer electronic dance music festival have convinced the city to seek a new bylaw targeting loud bass at all outdoor events.
The bass noise threshold, as measured inside neighbouring properties, will restrict the boom and rumble to 85 decibels. Meanwhile, the fine for excessive noise on private properties is set to go from $50 to $125 minimum, and $100 t0 $250 maximum.
And while the rules for grass, weeds and unsightly properties will remain the same, fines are slated to climb, with grass over 15 cm going from a minimum of $100 to $200, and the maximum is going from $300 to $400.
The Calgary Community Standards department will continue to rely on its compliance model of enforcement, which starts with a warning before moving to a situation where a contractor is hired to perform the work and the property owner is billed. Fines are generally reserved for repeat offenders.
