After hearing about a number of really outrageous recent bylaw enforcement actions in Ottawa (someone in Kanata being told to remove all the dead leaves from their yard; someone else having her garden completely razed to the ground; a native plant gardener being told that her goldenrod is a prohibited plant…), I decided to take a close look at the existing property standards bylaws in Ottawa (including the newly revised (2023) “boulevard” bylaw) and write a critique of what needs changing in them.
I was shocked to discover that the Ottawa bylaws are some of the worst I’ve seen: vague, arbitrary, mandating conformity to the neighbourhood, not defining what species are prohibited, not itemizing height requirements, using aesthetic terms that are open to vastly different subjective interpretations…
Here’s a link to the full text of my critique, in case anyone (or a group) is curious and open to working to advocate for change in Ottawa:
If you’re interested in a summary rather than reading the full critique, here it is:
There are 3 different bylaws in Ottawa related to yards/gardens: Property Maintenance Bylaw No 2005-208, Property Standards Bylaw No 2014-416, and Use and Care of Roads Bylaw No 2003-498.
The main problems with these 3 bylaws are:
The official and legal text of the bylaws are not on the City’s website.
It’s unclear as to whether the “Naturalized Area” information on the City’s website is part of the Property Maintenance bylaw or not, creating uncertainty for residents.
The lack of definition of “weeds” or “grass,” which means residents don’t know what plants are prohibited, and prohibitions will be subjectively determined by enforcement officers.
The use (and regulation) of the subjective term “heavy undergrowth.”
The use (and regulation) of aesthetic language such as “unsightly.”
The requirement that yards/gardens must conform to whatever landscapes their neighbours have (“consistent with the surrounding environment”).
The prohibition against leaving the leaves, leaving plant stalks, and including twigs, branches and nurse logs as habitat features, because all are “garden refuse” which must be “cleaned” up.
Here’s hoping that an Ottawa group will take on the task of advocating for the reform of these terrible bylaws and their enforcement!