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Council clamps down on improperly parked trailers

September 23, 2021   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

A joint notice of motion regarding the parking of trailers in residential driveways was brought forward by councillors Todd Taylor, Lisa Post, and Debbie Sherwood during a regular Council meeting last Monday (Sept. 13)

The three councillors have been hearing concerns from residents over the past camping season, saying they cannot see around their neighbours trailers when backing out of their driveways onto town roads.  There has also been some trailers parked in residential driveways that are too long to properly fit and extend onto the street, past the curb.

Currently, there’s no bylaw that clearly prohibits this type of parking. This was discovered when the Town of Orangeville’s bylaw department was called to address an improperly parked trailer and saw that they didn’t have any authority over the matter, with the way the bylaw is written.

The Notice of Motion, which involves updating the Town’s Zoning Bylaw so it can ensure all trailers are properly parked within residential driveways, was unanimously approved by Council, with a few tweaks.

Deputy Mayor Andy Macintosh recommended that the motion to refer to the trailers as “recreational vehicles” that way motorhomes are covered in the bylaw as well.

Coun. Grant Peters followed up by asking that all improperly parked vehicles be included in the bylaw.

Mayor Sandy Brown echoed Coun. Peters’ comments, noting he’s heard about school buses being parked past resident’s driveways. He added that he supports modifying the Town’s bylaw so that all vehicles are subject to the same parking regulations as the trailers.

The notice of motion was approved, with the amendment that it will include all vehicles and equipment that overhangs past a resident’s driveway.

The bylaw is expected to go in effect by June of 2022.

The motion initially wanted to see the bylaw updated by Jan. 1, 2022, but the Town’s manager of planning and infrastructure services, Brandon Ward noted that it wouldn’t be possible as Town staff have to follow the typical statutory framework for amending a bylaw. This process includes background review, reviewing best practices, and consultation, which involves hosting a public meeting to get feedback from residents.

Newmarket, Brampton and Mississauga have similar bylaws that regulate how trailers are parked in resident’s driveways.

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