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Questions arise about Mono bylaw enforcement

February 26, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By JAMES MATTHEWS

One of Mono’s loudest voices in the lobby for the new municipal noise bylaw wants council to consider questions about enforcement.

Mayor John Creelman said that when council met on Feb. 10, the former municipal noise bylaw was antiquated and largely unenforceable. The previous bylaw hadn’t been updated since 2004.

But now that Mono has passed its new Noise Bylaw, resident Bob McCrae asked during council’s Feb. 24 meeting about the mechanism for enforcing the legislation.

He said he checked online to investigate how to report complaints under the new bylaw. He learned that people are required to fill out a report detailing complaints about noise or other activities governed by the town bylaws.

The problem with that regarding the noise bylaw, he said, is timing.

“If at midnight my nice neighbour around the corner from me is having an outdoor party with a live band, or if the Event Centre is having something that’s going past midnight, filing an online form is near useless to stop that and prevent it,” he said.

The Event Centre is operated by the Orangeville Agriculture Society and is used by many groups as a venue for public events and fundraising.

McCrae asked if there is someone at the municipality whom people can contact for an immediate response?

Fred Simpson, the town’s clerk, said the town doesn’t maintain an around-the-clock bylaw enforcement strategy.

“We don’t have the resources to be able to do that,” Simpson said.

Staff can crunch numbers and forward a report to council with cost details for such enforcement, he said.

The OPP responded to municipal bylaw complaints in the past, he said. But the province’s new community safety legislation specifically states that municipal bylaw enforcement is no longer the OPP’s responsibility.

The provincial police force has stated that it will respond to bylaw complaints that pose a risk to public safety.

“So there is a possibility at their discretion that they may respond to a noise complaint outside of business hours,” Simpson said.

Creelman said he would be happy to raise the question at a community police services board meeting.

Councillor Melinda Davie said there is a need to repeat and clarify how a bylaw is to be enforced.

“A complaint online and a complaint because somebody has noise at midnight is still going to be looked into,” Davie said. “And it’s still possible to make a finding even though there isn’t somebody there with a decibel metre.”

She said offenders don’t have to be caught “in the act,” but there needs to be proof that the bylaw was broken.

It was also the case in bylaw enforcement for a follow-up to the complaint.

“But it doesn’t mean that our bylaw isn’t enforceable,” she said.

Creelman said many people who report noise complaints have used their cellphones to record it.

“That is helpful in the event of a follow-up,” Creelman said.

Coun. Elaine Capes said people who feel they’re being disturbed can indeed call the OPP, and they will investigate.

“By default, the OPP become our after-hours bylaw enforcement,” McCrae said.

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