This is the exact embedded text of the captured official document.
Snapshot 6fb0df6a36c9 · verified 2026-08-23 ·
original document ·
archived snapshot ·
unofficial consolidation, the official version is held by the municipal clerk.
LAND DRAINAGE BY-LAW NO. 2274
A By-Law of the City of Steinbach to limit conveyance of environmental water to the
sanitary sewer and to reduce nuisances caused by environmental water.
May 19, 2026 - First Reading
August 4, 2026 - Second and Third Reading
WHEREAS Section 232(1) of The Municipal Act, states that, "a Council may pass by-
laws for municipal purposes respecting the following matters:
(a) the safety, health, protection and well-being of people, and the safety and
protection of property;
(b) people, activities and things in, on or near a public place or a place open to the
public, including parks, municipal roads, recreation centres, restaurants, facilities,
retail stores, malls, and private clubs and facilities that are exempt from municipal
taxation;
(c) subject to section 233, activities or things in or on private property;
(e) private works on, over, along or under municipal roads;
(h) drains and drainage on private or public property;
(n) businesses, business activities and persons engaged in business;
(o) the enforcement of by-laws."
AND WHEREAS Section 233 of The Municipal Act, states that, "A by-law under
clause 232(1)(c) (activities or things in or on private property) may contain provisions
only in respect of
(a) the requirement that land and improvements be kept and maintained in a safe
and clean condition;
(c) the removal of top soil; and
(d) activities or things that in the opinion of the council are or could become a
nuisance, which may include noise, weeds, odours, unsightly property, fumes and
vibrations."
NOW, THEREFORE, the Council of the City of Steinbach in a meeting duly assembled,
enacts as follows:
PART 1: INTERPRETATION
1. Name of By-Law
The name of this by-law, for citation, is the "Land Drainage By-Law."
2. Declared Nuisances
The City Council of the City of Steinbach declares the following to be nuisances, as
determined in the opinion of a City Manager Designate:
2.1. conveyance of Environmental Water to the City's sanitary sewer system;
2.2. causing or permitting stagnant water;
2.3. causing or permitting deviations from an approved drainage plan;
2.4. causing or permitting a rainwater management system, or subsurface drainage
system to:
2.4.1. create a hazard on public or private property including, but not limited to:
2.4.1.1. icy surfaces on public right of ways such as sidewalks, streets,
driveways;
2.4.1.2. slippery conditions on public right of ways for pedestrians or vehicles.
2.4.2. cause or create ponding, pooling, flooding, or water damage to adjacent
lands, dwellings, structures, or infrastructure;
2.4.3. drain onto neighboring properties, including drainage across property lines
without proper control;
2.4.4. overload or impair drainage infrastructure, including, but not limited to
storm sewers, ditches, public gutters, or culverts; or
2.4.5. result in, or significantly contribute to, a risk of public or environmental
harm or prevent the intended functioning of City owned land drainage
systems.
3. Definitions
In this by-law:
3.1. Approved Drainage Plan means a drainage layout, endorsed by the City,
which is designed to manage water on a property so that it:
3.1.1. Does not create a nuisance for adjacent properties, and
3.1.2. Does not contribute excess runoff into municipal drainage systems.
3.2. City Manager Designate means any person authorized by the City Manager to
enforce this by-law on behalf of Steinbach City Council.
3.3. Environmental Water means any water that is present in the environment by
way of natural means and that exists in the form of rainwater or subsurface
groundwater.
3.4. Inflow and Infiltration Reduction Program means an initiative of the City of
Steinbach aimed at reducing the amount of environmental water entering the
sanitary sewer system. A City Manager Designate may declare an Inflow and
Infiltration Reduction Program for the entire City or for specific areas within
the City. The declaration shall be communicated through public channels and/
or by direct notification via letter mail. The declaration of such a program takes
precedence over any exceptions previously granted by a City Manager
Designate.
3.5. Occupier means any person in actual or constructive possession of a property
pursuant to a lease, tenancy license or other right to occupy.
3.6. Person means an individual, firm, partnership or corporation and, where the
context requires, shall include the plural as well as the singular.
3.7. Property means any land as defined in The Municipal Act within the City
whether or not there is situated thereon a dwelling or any other building.
3.8. Raingarden means a garden of native shrubs, perennials, and flowers planted
in a small depression, which is generally formed on a natural slope. It is
designed to temporarily hold and soak in rainwater runoff that flows from
subsurface drainage systems and rainwater management systems.
3.9. Rainwater Management System means any feature or combination of
features--such as gutters, downspouts, rain barrels, cisterns, infiltration areas,
grading, land elevations, rain gardens, ditches, swales, or similar structures--
designed to collect, convey, store, or disperse precipitation and surface water
runoff in a manner that prevents nuisance, erosion, or property damage.
3.10. Stagnant Water means any pond of water that is greater than two inches in
depth, in any one location, and that exists at least at that depth for more than 36
hours and is entirely surrounded by land.
3.11. Subsurface drainage system means any feature or combination of features -
such as underground conduits (e.g., weeping tile), sump pits, sump pumps,
pumps, French drains, floor drains, discharge pipes, and related equipment -
designed to collect, convey, or remove groundwater or soil water beneath or
surrounding a building to prevent accumulation, nuisance, or damage.
3.11.1. A Pre-existing, Un-altered subsurface drainage system refers to a system
that did not include a sump pit and sump pump at time of original building
permit issuance, or that was constructed before April 1st of 2003.
PART 2: SUBSURFACE DRAINAGE SYSTEMS
4. Subsurface drainage systems shall be designed and constructed in accordance with
recognized engineering practices, all applicable building codes, City of Steinbach
Building By-Law 2105 and any amendments or successive By-Laws thereto, and this
by-law - ensuring that the water level in the sump pit is normally maintained below
the lowest point of the weeping tile connection.
4.1. For clarity, it is an offence to install any component of a subsurface drainage
system that does not comply with the requirements of the Manitoba building
code, City of Steinbach Building By-Law 2105 and any amendments or
successive By-Laws thereto, and the requirements of this by-law unless a
written exception is provided by a City Manager Designate.
5. An owner or occupier of a property shall not knowingly cause, permit or allow the
installation, replacement or modification of sump pumps or any other component(s)
of a subsurface drainage system in a manner that results in discharge or drainage:
5.1. Into the City sanitary sewer system or any connection thereto;
5.2. onto a permeable ground surface adjacent to a building or structure; or
5.3. in a way that causes a nuisance as declared in section 2 of this By-Law.
6. A City Manager Designate may require pre-existing, un-altered subsurface drainage
systems to be altered:
6.1. in order to reduce the amount of environmental water entering the sanitary
sewer system by declaring an Inflow and Infiltration Reduction Program;
6.2. where a subsurface drainage system is causing a nuisance at a particular
property or in a localized area as determined by a City Manager Designate.
PART 3: FLOOR DRAINS
7. Any floor drain which is connected to a sanitary sewer shall consist of a solid pipe
which shall extend from the floor drain trap to the finished floor level with no
interconnection between the floor drain and a sump pit or any other component of a
subsurface drainage system, or rainwater management system.
7.1. A City Manager Designate may grant a written exemption for an existing,
unaltered subsurface drainage system that is being retrofitted with a sump
pump, provided that a backwater valve is installed as part of the retrofit.
PART 4: RAINWATER MANAGEMENT
8. An owner or occupier of a property shall not knowingly cause, permit or allow any
component(s) of a Rainwater Management system to discharge or drain:
8.1. into the City sanitary sewer system or any connection thereto;
8.2. onto a permeable ground surface adjacent to a structure; or
8.3. in a way that causes a nuisance as declared in section 2 of this By-Law.
9. An owner or occupier of a Property may direct any rainwater downspouts,
eavestroughs, sump pump discharge pipes etc. towards:
9.1. a raingarden that is able to accept the water without causing a nuisance to
neighboring properties;
9.2. the front of the Property;
9.3. the rear of the Property;
9.4. a sideyard which does not abut another Property;
9.5. a sideyard which abuts another Property if there is a minimum of 10 (ten) feet
of permeable ground between the outfall of the downspout or eavestrough and
the adjacent Property; or
9.6. any area of the property that does not cause or create a nuisance on neighboring
property.
10. Where an approved drainage plan exists for a property, the owner or occupier shall
not cause, permit, or allow any new or existing alterations to property elevations or
other components of the plan that deviate from the approved drainage plan, unless an
alternative plan has been submitted to and approved by a City Manager Designate.
PART 5: PENALTIES AND ENFORCEMENT
11. Penalties
11.1. Subject to the Administrative Penalty By-Law, or a by-law implemented under
the authority of the Provincial Offences Act, any person who contravenes or
disobeys, or refuses or neglects to obey any provision(s) of this by-law is guilty
of an offence and is liable to the fines listed in Schedule "A".
11.2. Where a corporation commits an offense against this by-law, each person who
is authorized, or consented to, connived at, or knowingly permitted or
acquiesced in, the doing of the act that constitutes offence, is likewise guilty of
the offense and liable to the penalty for which provision is made in section
11.1.
11.3. Where the contravention, refusal, neglect, omission, or failure, continues for
more than one day, the guilty person is liable to a separate offense for each day
it continues.
11.4. The costs (including legal fees related to the enforcement) of an action or
measure taken by the City under this by-law are an amount owing to the City by
the person who contravened the by-law, The Municipal Act, The Planning Act,
or any other Act the City is authorized to enforce.
11.5. In addition to all other rights of collection which the City may have at law, such
amounts may be collected by the City in the same manner as a tax may be
collected or enforced under The Municipal Act.
12. Inspection
12.1. A City Manager Designate may enter land/property, buildings or structures at
any reasonable time to carry out an inspection, enforcement or action, or
request that anything be produced to assist in the inspection, remedy,
enforcement or action taken.
12.2. A City Manager Designate must display or produce upon request identification
showing that they are authorized to make the entry.
12.3. A City Manager Designate may take written notes of any violations that may
exist, and may take photographic evidence, which will be kept on file.
12.4. A City Manager Designate may conduct any further inspections necessary to
determine whether the actions or measures set out in a Notice of Contravention
or an Order to Remedy a Contravention have been taken to remedy the
contravention or situation, or to prevent a reoccurrence of the contravention.
12.5. It shall be a City Manager Designates opinion and discretion whether a Notice
of Contravention or Order to Remedy a Contravention have been complied
with.
This by-law shall come into effect upon enactment.
PART 6: REPEAL AND ENACTMENT
The following by-law(s) are hereby repealed:
Sump Pump By-Law No. 1674 (2003)
DONE AND PASSED by the Council of the City of Steinbach, duly assembled,
this 4th day of August 2026.
___________________________
Mayor
___________________________
City Manager
SCHEDULE "A" PENALTY FINES
LAND DRAINAGE BY-LAW NO. 2274
Provision
Contravention
Administrative
Penalty ($)
Early Payment
Discount ($)
4, 4.1
Installation of a component of a subsurface drainage system that
does not comply with the Manitoba Building Code, The City
Building By-Law, or this by-law, without written exception from a
City Manager Designate
1000
500
5.1
Cause, permit, or allow a subsurface drainage system to discharge
into the sanitary sewer
1000
500
5.2, 5.3
Cause, permit, or allow a subsurface drainage system to discharge
onto a prohibited permeable surface, or in a manner that causes a
nuisance
500
250
7
Connect a floor drain to a sump pit, subsurface drainage system,
or rainwater management system contrary to section 7
500
250
8, 9
Cause, permit, or allow a rainwater management system to
discharge or drain in a manner that causes a nuisance
500
250
10
Cause, permit, or allow alterations that deviate from an approved
drainage plan without approval of a City Manager Designate
500
250
12
Fail to permit inspection, fail to produce requested information,
or obstruct a City Manager Designate, if that obligation is
expressly stated
500
250