New rules for temporary tent structures are on the horizon for the city of Timmins.
Last week City Clerk Steph Palmateer brought forward an amendment to update a municipal bylaw at city council. The amendment aimed to 'regulate and permit temporary tent structures' and to 'address concerns raised by ratepayers.'
The bylaw encompasses not only tent structures, but also 'small accessory buildings' and 'small storage containers.'
Councillor Pat Bamford asked Palmateer what the regulations were for larger storage containers, also known as sea containers, as he has seen them in town more frequently.
"Currently, sea containers are not allowed in the residential area in accordance with our zoning bylaw" replied Palmateer.
Palmateer said this particular motion was to implement certain aesthetic standards, but only for the smaller units.
"So we can control how they look and the feel of them, basically the ones that are being used as storage sheds for your garden tools and lawnmowers, things like that. Its not intended for the large storage containers" he said.
Councillor Noella Rinaldo requested some clarification on the 'residential standards'.
"They have to make it blend in with the community, so that would mean some kind of a roof and siding. So that basically when you're looking at it, you wouldn't be able to tell that its actually a sea container," said Palmateer.
Rinaldo asked at what point does it become part of a property's assessment.
"A shed doesn't normally get assessed, so if we're asking them to put a roof and siding, does it become part of the assessment program?" she asked.
Palmateer said 'eventually it will get picked up.'
"The idea behind enclosing the structure, is they'll be required to take out a permit to do so, at which time it will be forwarded to MPAC through the normal process. Then MPAC will decide if the value is great enough to include in their assessment," he said.
He said tent structures and small sea containers were lumped together in this bylaw amendment, due to certain deficiencies noticed by bylaw officials.
"So what we've done is we made changes to hopefully improve it. We've also created a fee structure that would cover the inspections of the seasonal tent structures, year long tent structures, as well as the small accessory structures. That would be annual fee, and the owners would be required to get an annual permit. This way, it will allow enforcement services to create a database, and know where these structures are located so that they can have continuous follow-up."
Many residents throughout the city use framed tent structures as a 'carport' to protect their vehicles from the elements. Tent structures in the front of a property or in a driveway are required to be taken down during summer months.
Councillor Walter Wawrzaszek wanted the amendment tweaked to state that a tent structure must be five feet from a walkway or a neighbour's foundation.
"The snow and ice that falls off of those tents seems to appear on people's walls" he said.
Mayor Steve Black said the issue had been brought to his attention several times in the past year or so. Some residents have sent him photos showing a neighbour's tent causing issues on their property.
"One of the concerns was that they have exhaust vents and so forth along the side of a house, and when the tents are in the property and ice and snow slides off the roof, that snow piles up against the buildings and blocks the vents. In some cases if you block vents, it can have a potentially significant and disastrous result," he said.
Councillor Pat Bamford said there was an 'issue of practicality' afoot, as he felt that five feet would eliminate most tents.
City Clerk Steph Palmateer's efforts to update a municipal bylaw were unsuccessful this time around. Andrew Autio for TimminsToday "I will side on the side of safety, over convenience of being able to set up a tent" said Black.
After a series of tedious and bizarre votes by council, including an unsuccessful motion by Councillor Andre Grzela to defer the decision, Palmateer's amendment was defeated on 3rd reading after it had already passed 1st and 2nd reading.
"May I ask for clarification? What does council want? You've amended the bylaw, you carried it, then you defeated it. I'm confused here," said a flabbergasted Palmateer.
Eventually council came to a decision which instructed Palmateer to bring back another amendment, which would address issues such as ground level windows and exhaust vents. The matter will be discussed yet again at an upcoming council meeting.
