BRUCEDALE – Guelph/Eramosa is updating its fencing bylaw.
The existing fencing bylaws were enacted in 2007 and 2005, and bylaw enforcement and property standards officer Ivan Lunevski said they contained outdated language that is amended in the new changes.
Line Fences Act
The township will be opting out of the Line Fences Act – legislation meant to support conflict resolution during disputes between neighbours.
During a committee of the whole meeting on Sept. 20, Lunevski said since 2007, the township has not dealt with any Line Fences Act applications.
“The township has been able to guide neighbours to settle disputes between themselves,” Lunevski said.
“If you share a fence, each neighbour shares the cost” of installation and repairs, said councilor Corey Woods, as well as decision making about the fence’s materials and height.
If property owners want to install a fence without their neighbours input, they can construct the fence inside of the property line instead of on the boundary and will shoulder the full cost of the fence.
Mayor Chris White said disputes that fall under the Line Fences Act are civil disputes, so the township does not have authority to tell residents how they must settle them. So “there’s no need for us to be in the middle of that – we can’t help.”
Woods said “considering we’ve had no appeals,” he’s fine with opting out of the act.
Councilors all agreed to opting out of the act during the Sept. 20 meeting.
Electric fences
The updated bylaw specifies that electric fences must have warning signs placed every 12 metres.
Councillor Bruce Dickieson challenged this requirement during the Sept. 20 meeting.
“I’d be darned if I have to put up a sign on my fence saying its electric,” he said, noting anyone close enough to touch the sign would be trespassing on his property, and the voltage is not high enough to do much harm.
“So what, they’ll get a 12 volt shock.”
White and Luvenski said the issue comes down to liability – property owners are liable if someone is hurt on their property, even trespassers.
Council directed Lunvenski to get a legal opinion to investigate whether the township could also be liable if they don’t include signage in the bylaw.
Legal council advised that “the signage requirement is desirable to assist in the limitation of township liability,” according to a report from Lunevski in the Oct. 2 agenda.
Electric fences in Guelph/Eramosa must:
– be located on land zoned for agricultural use, on land actually used for raising livestock;
– have a maximum charge of 12 volts;
– be designed and installed only to contain livestock (not for property fortification); and
– have signs installed at not more than 12 metres (39 feet) intervals along the fence, warning that the fence carries electricity.
Encroachment
Fences encroaching on municipal road allowances or right-of-ways are prohibited without township’s approval of an encroachment agreement.
This is consistent in both the previous and updated fencing bylaws.
Farm fencing
Both the current and updated fencing bylaws have provisions that assure the construction or maintenance of fences used for normal farm practices will not be hindered by the bylaw.
Lunevski’s report states “if a farm fence is constructed to support an agricultural use the fence bylaw will not limit the height and type of farm fence.”
The new bylaw defines farm fence as “a fence of open construction erected for the purpose of containing livestock, enclosing crops, water areas, woodlots, buildings, fields or laneways or any ‘agricultural use.’”
The bylaw defines agricultural use as “any general farming or agricultural use which is not obnoxious to the public welfare including but not limited to animal hospitals, apiaries, aviaries, berry or bush crops, animal husbandry, dog kennels or the breeding, boarding or sale of dogs of cats, field crops, forestry research station, goat or cattle dairies, mushroom farms, orchards, riding stables or academies, the raising of sheep or goats, the raising of swine, tree and shrub farms, and such uses or enterprises as are customarily carried on in the field of general agriculture.”
Swimming pools
Solid plexiglass has been added to the bylaw as an acceptable fencing material for pool enclosures, as long as the glass panels meet federal Canadian General Standards Board standards.
Lunevski’s report in the Sept. 20 meeting agenda states “plexiglass swimming pool enclosures would provide greater visibility to view those using the pool, providing greater safety.”
Other fence materials
Prohibited materials have been added to the updated bylaw.
People are not allowed to erect, own, or maintain fences made of sheet metal, corrugated panels of any material, or any materials not usually intended for use in permanent fencing, unless specifically permitted by the bylaw.
The new bylaw also has an added provision to grant enforcement officers the right to enter a premise to inspect a fence, and rules with respect to notice delivery.
Maximum heights for fences in the new bylaw vary based on the location and type of property, ranging from 0.8m (2ft 7in) in a driveway sight triangle to 2.5m (8ft 2in) for rear yards under certain conditions.
Fences and swimming pool enclosures that were lawfully erected prior to the enactment of the new bylaw are deemed compliant until they are replaced, at which time they must comply with the new provisions.
Council voted unanimously to approve the amendments to the fencing bylaw.
