This is the exact embedded text of the captured official document.
Snapshot 23b90b229e9b · verified 2026-06-08 ·
original document ·
archived snapshot ·
unofficial consolidation, the official version is held by the municipal clerk.
Page 1 of 5
Summer Village of Larkspur
SUMMER VILLAGE OF LARKSPUR PUBLIC LAND USE AND RECREATION BYLAW
Bylaw Name:
Use of Public Lands
Bylaw number
25-07
Date Approved:
Reviewed By:
Date Reviewed:
WHEREAS, by virtue of the power conferred upon it by the Municipal Government Act, R.S.A. 2000, c.
M-26, as amended or repealed and replaced from time to time, (hereinafter the "Municipal
Government Act") the Council of the Summer Village of Larkspur, in the Province of Alberta, duly
assembled, enacts as follows:
1. PURPOSE
This bylaw is for the purpose of regulating the use of public lands to be compatible with the
normal activities of urban life and with the recreational objectives of the municipality.
2. DEFINITIONS
a. All definitions in this bylaw apply as defined in the Public Lands Act, RSA 2000, c P-40, and the
Public Lands Administration Regulation except where expressly stated in this bylaw.
b. "Act" shall mean the Municipal Government Act, Chapter M-26 RSA 2000.
c. "Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)" means a person appointed by Council under a bylaw by
the Summer Village of Larkspur in the Province of Alberta, or that person's designate acting
lawfully as CAO in any absence.
d. "Council" means the Council of the Summer Village of Larkspur.
e. "Municipality" means all lands within the Corporate Boundary limits of the Summer Village of
Larkspur in the Province of Alberta.
f. "Municipal Tag" means a ticket for any violation of this bylaw in the form of a numbered
"Notice of Violation" and contains provisions for either a "warning," or a "voluntary payment"
payable to the Summer Village of Larkspur with or without discount provisions.
g. "Peace Officer" means a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, a Peace Officer
appointed pursuant to the Alberta Peace Officer Act, or a Municipal Bylaw Enforcement Officer
appointed by the Summer Village of Larkspur.
h. "Person" includes any person, individual, owner, public body, body corporate, society, firm or
partnership;
i. "Public Land" means:
i. Environmental Reserves and Natural Areas; and
ii. Municipal Reserves;
iii. Any land subject to the Summer Village direction, management or control including but not
limited to:
1. Land titled to the Summer Village of Larkspur;
2. Developed or undeveloped Road Right-of-Ways and Statutory Road Allowances;
3. All easements in favor of the Summer Village;
4. All utility Right-of-Ways.
j. "Summer Village" means the Summer Village of Larkspur.
Page 2 of 5
k. "Unauthorized Use" means a person accessing on or over Public Lands or constructing, storing,
erecting or placing anything on/under or over Public Land for any purpose without written
consent from the Summer Village.
l. "Vehicle" means a device in, on or by which a person or thing may be transported or drawn on
a highway but does not include a mobility aid or a golf cart that is not capable of a speed that
exceeds 30 KPH.
m. "Violation Ticket" means a provincial ticket as described in the Alberta Provincial Offences
Procedures Act Chapter P-34, RSA 2000 and the Procedures Regulation and may be issued in
the form either a part 2 Summons or a part 3 Offence Notice.
3. CONSENT TO USE
a. Any person wishing to make use of public land, with the exception of day use, must apply to
the Summer Village in writing for their proposed use.
b. The CAO may authorize the proposed use and may specify conditions.
c. Privately owned signs on Public Lands are prohibited, except as exempted on a case-by-case
basis for signs for non-profit organizations under the Societies Act (Alberta) and/or the Board
of Trade Act (Canada).
4. PUBLIC PROPERTY
a. No person shall make unauthorized use of public land.
b. No person shall use the public land for the parking or temporary storage of any vehicle,
whether operable or inoperable, including but not limited to cars, trucks, vans, recreational
vehicles, all-terrain vehicles, snowmobiles, boats, campers, and trailers.
c. Docks and lifts may be temporarily stored on Summer Village reserves if they have written
permission from the Chief Administrative Officer as authorized in the "Temporary Seasonal
Docks and Lifts on Municipal Reserves" bylaw.
d. No person shall develop on any municipal reserve, environmental reserve, or other municipal-
owned land.
5. UNAUTHORIZED USES on Public Land
a. Unauthorized uses include but are not limited to the following:
a. Constructing a driveway, parking pad or site, garage, stairway, walkway, pool, patio, deck;
b. Constructing and/or maintaining a skating or hockey rink;
c. Placing or storing personal property;
d. Installing irrigation or electrical systems;
e. Constructing drainage facilities, including pipes, catch basins, sumps, swales, detention
ponds and ancillary structures;
f. Erecting staging, scaffolding or similar structures;
g. Depositing or storing building materials, topsoil, clay, sand, gravel, storing or operating
machinery, equipment or tools used or to be used in connection with the erection, alteration,
demolition, repair or painting of any structure;
h. Digging, cutting, excavating, filling or dumping soil, refuse, garden or yard material, compost,
and other materials.
Page 3 of 5
6. PROHIBITIONS
No person shall:
a. Remove trees and/or shrubs, excavation, grading or drainage alteration on any municipal
reserve, environmental reserve, or other municipal-owned land, without written approval from
the municipality;
b. Erect or cause to be erected any fence on any property owned by the municipality without their
express written approval;
c. Operate any vehicle on public land;
d. Park any vehicle upon any land owned by the Summer Village which the said Summer Village
uses or permits to be used as a playground, recreation area, public park or for utility purposes
except on such areas that the Municipal Administrator or designated employee may designate by
a Traffic Control Device for vehicle parking;
e. Place unauthorized signage/commercial advertising upon the Public Land.
f. Operate or permit the operation of all-terrain vehicles, dirt bikes, golf carts, or quads on any
public land, pathway, or trail within the Summer Village, except where expressly authorized in
writing by the Chief Administrative Officer.
7. THE CAO, MAY, BY ORDER
a. Require the person responsible for an unauthorized use of public land to cease such
unauthorized use.
b. An Order given by the CAO or designate must:
i. Identify the unauthorized use,
ii. Direct the person to take any action or measures necessary to remedy the unauthorized use,
including, but not limited to, the restoration of the public land to its state immediately before
commencement of the unauthorized use,
iii. State a time within which the person must comply with the direction.
c. An Order may be served to an individual or a business:
i. Personally, if directed to an individual or by delivery to a person apparently over the age of
sixteen (16) years residing or employed at the address where the individual resides, carries on
business or is employed;
ii. Sending by prepaid registered mail to its registered office or its place of business in the case
of any other corporation.
d. No person shall fail to comply with an Order.
e. If the Summer Village is unable to ascertain the name of the person or business responsible for
any unauthorized use:
i. The Summer Village will post a sign on the public land which is the subject of the
unauthorized use stating that, if the unauthorized use is not stopped and all work done
necessary to restore the public land to its condition immediately before commencement of the
unauthorized use, by a date at least twenty-one (21) days after the sign is posted, the Summer
Village will do such work.
ii. If the Summer Village does work pursuant to the preceding paragraph, the cost of so doing
will be a debt due to the Summer Village from the person responsible for the unauthorized
use.
iii. The work referred to in preceding paragraphs includes, but is not limited to, the removal of
Page 4 of 5
materials and chattels of all kinds, excavating and removing improvements and carrying out
landscaping.
iv. In the case of an emergency of any kind or a perceived threat to public safety, the period of
twenty-one (21) days prescribed may be shortened to whatever period the CAO considers
appropriate.
v. The Summer Village may sell any materials or chattels referred to in paragraph 5.3(5.3.3) and
apply the proceeds towards payment of the debt due to the Summer Village from the person
responsible for the unauthorized use.
8. ENFORCEMENT
a. A person who contravenes any provision of this bylaw or the "Temporary Seasonal Docks and
Lifts on Municipal Reserves" bylaw is guilty of an offence.
b. A person who is found guilty of an offence under this bylaw or the Temporary Seasonal Docks
and Lifts bylaw is liable to a fine of at least $200.00 and not exceeding $10,000.00.
c. If a fine imposed is not paid, the Summer Village will proceed to collect it in the same manner
as a civil judgement in favor of the Summer Village.
d. In addition to imposing a fine pursuant to section 6.2, the Court may:
i. Order the responsible person to cease the unauthorized use and take whatever steps are
necessary to restore the public land which has been subject to the use to the condition it was
in prior to commencement of the use; and
ii. Direct that, if the responsible person fails to comply with an order pursuant to the preceding
paragraph 6.4 (a) within a specified time, the Summer Village will be at liberty to do the work
required and recover the costs of so doing from the responsible person. Such costs may be
determined either concurrently with the imposition of a fine or upon subsequent application to
the court.
9. VIOLATION TAGS
a. A Bylaw Enforcement Officer is hereby authorized and empowered to issue a Violation Tag to
any person who the Bylaw Enforcement officer has reasonable and probable grounds to
believe has contravened any provision of this bylaw.
b. A Violation Tag may be issued to such person either personally, or by mailing a copy to such
person at his or her last known post office address.
c. The Violation Tag shall be in a form approved by the Municipal Administrator and shall state:
i. The name of the person;
ii. The offence;
iii. The appropriate penalty for the offence being the minimum penalty prescribed by this
bylaw;
iv. That the penalty shall be paid within thirty (30) days of the issuance of the Violation Tag;
v. Any other information as may be required by the Municipal Administrator.
d. Where a contravention of this bylaw is of a continuing nature, further Violation Tags may be
issued by the Bylaw Enforcement Officer, provided that no more than one Violation Tag shall
be issued for each day that the contravention continues.
Page 5 of 5
e. Where a Violation Tag is issued pursuant to this bylaw, the person to whom the Violation Tag is
issued may, in lieu of being prosecuted for the offence, pay to the Village the penalty specified
in the Violation Tag.
f. Nothing in this bylaw shall prevent a Bylaw Enforcement officer from immediately issuing a
Violation Ticket.
10. VIOLATION TICKET
a. If the penalty specified on a Violation Tag is not paid within the prescribed time period, then a
Bylaw Enforcement Officer is hereby authorized and empowered to issue a Violation Ticket
pursuant to the Provincial Offenses Procedures Act.
b. A Peace Officer is hereby authorized and empowered to issue a Violation Ticket to any person
who the Peace Officer has reasonable and probable grounds to believe has contravened any
provision of this bylaw.
c. A violation ticket may be issued to such person either personally, or by mailing a copy to such
person at his or her last known post office address.
d. The violation ticket shall be in a form approved by the Municipal Administrator and shall state:
i. The name of the person;
ii. The offence;
iii. The appropriate penalty for the offence being the minimum penalty prescribed by this
bylaw;
iv. The time within which the penalty must be paid;
v. Any other information as may be required by the Municipal Administrator.
11. REPEAL
This bylaw repeals Bylaw #21-02 and Bylaw #99-02.
12. EFFECTIVE DATE
This bylaw shall come into force upon third and final reading.
Read a first time this 10th day of June 2025
Read a second time this 10th day of June 2025
Received Unanimous consent to be given third reading this 10th day of June 2025
Read a third time and finally passed this 10th day of June 2025
_____________________________ _______________________________
Mayor Administrator