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Memorandum
Corporate By-law Number BL 96/2022
TO:
Office of the City Clerk
FILE:
FROM:
Doug Vincent
Development & Emergency Services - Licensing & Enforcement
DATE:
08/16/2022
SUBJECT:
BL 96/2022 - Vacant Building Security
MEETING DATE:
City Council - 09/12/2022 (mm/dd/yyyy)
By-law Description: A By-law to authorize the City of Thunder Bay to require Owners
of Vacant Buildings to register such buildings and to ensure they are secured against
unauthorized entry and to provide authority to enter and authorize work to be
undertaken in certain circumstances.
Authorization: Report R 106/2022 (Development & Emergency Services/Licensing &
Enforcement) Commmittee of the Whole - July 25, 2022 and Memoradum from Doug
Vincent relative to Referral of Report R 106/2022 (Development & Emergency
Services/Licensing & Enforcement) Committee of the Whole August 22, 2022
By-law Explanation: The purpose of this By-law is to ensure that vacant buildings are
secured against unauthorized entry and to provide authority to enter and authorize work
to be undertaken in certain circumstances.
Schedules and Attachments:
Amended/Repealed By-law Number(s):
THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF THUNDER BAY
BY-LAW NUMBER BL 96/2022
A By-law to authorize the City of Thunder Bay to require
Owners of Vacant Buildings to register such buildings
and to ensure they are secured against unauthorized
entry and to provide authority to enter and authorize work
to be undertaken in certain circumstances.
Recitals:
1.
The Municipal Act, 2001, S.O. 2001, c. 25, s. 8, provides that the powers of a
municipality shall be interpreted broadly so as to confer broad authority on the
municipality to enable the municipality to govern its affairs as it considers appropriate and
to enhance the municipality's ability to respond to municipal issues;
2.
The Municipal Act, 2001, S. O. 2001, c. 25, s. 9, provides that a municipality has
the capacity, rights, powers and privileges of a natural person for the purpose of
exercising its authority;
3.
The Municipal Act, 2001, S. O. 2001 c. 25, s. 10, gives the municipality broad
authority to pass by-laws respecting the health, safety, and well-being of persons;
4.
The Municipal Act, 2001, S. O. c. 25, s. 128, provides that a local municipality may
prohibit and regulate with respect to public nuisances including matters that, in the opinion
of Council, are or could become or cause public nuisances;
5.
The Council of The Corporation of the City of Thunder Bay is of the opinion that
vacant buildings that are not secured against unauthorized entry constitute public
nuisances by attracting vandals and creating various safety hazards.
ACCORDINGLY, THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF THUNDER BAY
ENACTS AS FOLLOWS:
1. SHORT TITLE
That this By-law may be cited as the "Vacant Building Security By-law."
2. DEFINITIONS
a)
"Building Damaged by Fire" shall include a building partially or completely
damaged by fire to the extent that it will not be inhabited until it has undergone repairs;
b)
"City" shall mean The Corporation of the City of Thunder Bay and, where the
context allows, shall include its agents and employees;
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By-Law No 96/2022.
c)
"Fire Chief" shall mean the Chief of the Thunder Bay Fire Department and shall
include a delegate or delegates thereof;
d)
"Fire Department" shall mean the City of Thunder Bay Fire Department;
e)
"Hazard"- means Lands, Buildings, Structures, or materials that are in an Unsafe
Condition, or is a source or a situation, with the potential for harm in terms of human
injury or ill-health, damage to property, damage to the environment, risk of fire, or a
combination of these and includes unsafe containers which have a closing or locking
mechanism such that something or someone inside could be trapped and unable to be
released without external assistance;
f)
"Land" - means property, whether or not it contains Buildings or Structures, and
whether it is vacant or occupied. Reference to "Land" includes all Buildings and
Structures, including fences, on the Land;
g)
"Manager" means the Manager of Licensing & Enforcement or their designates.
h)
"Municipal Standards By-law" means a By-law of the City that prescribes the
standards for maintenance and occupancy of property and to prohibit occupancy and
includes any amendments thereto and any successor by-laws;
i)
"Nuisance" - means any condition or use of Land which
unreasonably interferes with the use and enjoyment of another person's
Land. Examples include but are not limited to:
a) emissions of smoke, gas, fumes, dust, or sawdust;
b) objectionable odours; or
c) the unsightly storage of goods, wares, merchandise, debris
or other material.
j)
"Officer" shall mean the Fire Chief, a fire prevention officer, police officer or a
municipal law enforcement officer of the City;
k)"Order" means a Work Order under this By-law;
l)
"Owner(s)" shall include the registered property owner or agent thereof: a person
having or appearing to have beneficial ownership or care and control of the property
and an owner as defined by the Building Code Act, 1992;
m)
"Property Entry By-law" means City of Thunder Bay By-law No. 075- 2011 and
amendments thereto or successor thereof;
n)
"Registry" means a list of all properties in the City on which a vacant building is
situated together with the following information with respect to those properties:
a) property address, or legal description if there is no municipal address;
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By-Law No 96/2022.
b) the name of the owner(s);
c) current mailing address and telephone number of the owner(s);
d) the name of a secondary contact person should the owner be unreachable;
e) current mailing address and telephone number of the secondary contact person;
f) immediate past use of the property;
g) any relevant known risks or information for emergency service providers; and
h) whether or not a fire safety plan exists for the property in accordance with the
Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997, and the location of that plan if it exists
o)
"Safe condition"- means a condition that does not pose or constitute an undue
or unreasonable hazard or risk to life, limb, or health of any person on or about the
property, and includes a structurally sound condition;
p)
"Secure(d) Against Unauthorized Entry" may, at the discretion of the City,
includes the boarding of a building opening or other methods to prevent entry;
q)
"Unoccupied Building" means, for the purposes of this By-law, any building that is
not occupied by the owner or tenant under a tenancy agreement and has been
accessed by unwanted persons, but does not meet the definition of a vacant building,
and may include a newly or partially constructed building that is or appears to be
actively used for a legitimate purpose or appears dormant or abandoned.
r)
"Unsafe Condition"- is a descriptive phrase for Land, Buildings, Structures, or
material that are in a condition or state of repair that causes a hazard to life, limb, or
health of any person authorized or expected to be on or near the Land in question.
s)
"Vacant Building" means a building that is neither owner-occupied or tenant-
occupied through an agreement, for a period of ninety (90) days or more and shall
include a partially vacant buildings and a vacant or partially vacant building that is
occupied by unauthorized persons but does not include a new building that has not yet
obtained an occupancy permit.
t)
"Vermin" means mammals, birds, or insects injurious to humans or physical
property. Examples includes but are not limited to: skunks, rats, termites, raccoons, bird
infestations, poisonous insects, reptiles, mice, squirrels and other rodents.
3. REQUIREMENT TO REGISTER
Every Owner of a Vacant Building shall register the building(s), in writing, on the
appropriate form, with the Manager as soon as it becomes vacant; and
a) Provide access for a registration inspection, as requested, to document existing
conditions and ensure any required Fire Department and Property Standards
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By-Law No 96/2022.
concerns are addressed; and
b) Ensure any recommendations following the inspections are implemented and
maintained thereafter; and
c) Renew such registration(s) annually and pay annual inspection fee(s); and
d) Keep the City advised of changes in the current mailing address and phone/e
mail contacts and update alternate contacts within 30 days of such change to
ensure contact is possible in urgent situations and that the registry is maintained
accurately; and.
e) Notify the Manager, in writing, when the property is sold by amending the registry
to reflect such change; or
f) Notify the Manager, in writing, when the building is no longer requiring
registration because it is either reoccupied for use or demolished.
4. OWNER(S) RESPONSIBILITY
a) Every Owner shall ensure that any Vacant Building is secured against
unauthorized entry by persons, birds, rodents, and other vermin that may create
a nuisance within the building, surrounding lands, or neighbourhood where the
building is situated.
b) Every Owner shall ensure that any Unoccupied Building is secured against
unauthorized entry by persons, birds, rodents, and other vermin that may create
a nuisance within the building, surrounding lands, or neighbourhood where the
building is situated.
c) Every Owner shall ensure that any Vacant or Unoccupied Building shall be
maintained it in a safe condition and not allow an Unsafe Condition or Hazard to
develop.
d) Every Owner of a Vacant or Unoccupied Building, where an Unsafe Condition or
a Hazard is detected or reported, shall immediately take all measures required to
abate the Unsafe Condition or Hazard within the building and surrounding Land
e) Every Owner of any Unoccupied Building or Vacant Building, including vacant
property appurtenant thereto, shall protect the building or property against the
risk of fire, accident, or other danger including effectively preventing the entrance
to it of all unauthorized persons.
f) The requirements set out in Section 4, does not apply to a building, or portion
thereof, that is under construction within an active development or redevelopment
site, and under the authority of a building permit, where on-site work is actively
Page 4
By-Law No 96/2022.
progressing under an approved plan.
g) Every Owner shall, when required by the Fire Chief, shall remove and/or
relocated all stored materials, as directed.
5. SECURING A VACANT OR UNOCCUPIED BUILDING
For the purposes of section 4 of this By-law, the Owner of a Vacant Building or
Unoccupied Building shall:
a) keep all exterior doors to the building operational, so as to fit tightly within their
frames when closed;
b) keep all exterior doors to the building locked so as to prevent unauthorized entry;
c) keep all windows on the building properly glazed and in good repair;
d) keep all windows on the building either permanently sealed or locked so as to
prevent unauthorized entry;
e) keep all windows, doors, basement and attic hatchways and their frames
maintained to completely exclude rain or snow, and to substantially exclude wind
from entering the building;
f) render all floors above the first floor inaccessible to unauthorized entry by raising
fire escapes to a height of at least four metres (4 m) or one hundred fifty-six
inches (156 in), or guarding them in some other manner, that has been submitted
in writing and approved by an Officer;
g) maintain the building in compliance with the City's Municipal Standards By-law,
except where the Owner expressly declares in writing that the state of the
building is such that it cannot economically be repaired to the required standards
and should be demolished;
h) ensure that all utilities serving the building which are not required for safety or
security are properly disconnected or otherwise secured;
i) ensure that the property is kept free of infestations of rodents, vermin, birds, and
other harmful pests and not permit any conditions to arise or continue that would
allow such pests to harbour in or about the building;
j) Where the circumstances cannot reasonably allow the Owner to immediately
secure the building forthwith, and a Hazard or Unsafe Condition exists or likely to
develop, the Owner shall ensure that the property is monitored by a responsible
person at all times to prevent the entry of unauthorized persons, until the building
is adequately secured.
6.
SECURING/COVERING A VACANT OR UNOCCUPIED BUILDING
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By-Law No 96/2022.
a) If the normal locking of normal access points and other security measures for a
building do not prevent entry, entry shall be prevented as follows:
i.
ensure all doors, windows, or other openings are covered with a solid
piece of plywood, or an equivalent material, that shall be securely
fastened and tight fitting, watertight, and shall be of a thickness of not
less than 12 millimetres; and
ii.
be fixed, if covering a wooden door or window frame, by steel wire nails
of not less than 50 millimetres in length and, if covering a metallic door
or window frame, by self-tapping screws not less than 38 millimetres in
length and the nails or screws shall be spaced at intervals of not more
than 150 millimetres over the entire length of each vertical and
horizontal portion of each door or window frame; or
iii.
By blocking up all window, doors, and other openings in the building
that provide a means of entry with bricks or masonry units held in place
by mortar.
b) All materials used for securing Unoccupied and Vacant Buildings shall be
covered and maintained with a preservative that is reasonably compatible in
colour with the exterior finish of the building in a manner so as to minimize
detraction from the value of other properties in the immediate vicinity.
7.
BUILDINGS DAMAGED BY FIRE
a) Every Owner shall ensure that a Building Damaged by Fire, or relevant portion of
a building that was damaged by fire, is secured against unauthorized entry
forthwith, after the release of the relevant property by the authority having
jurisdiction.
b) Where an Owner has:
i.
expressed an intention not to comply with the requirements of this By
law; or
ii.
does not comply with the requirements of this By-law; or
iii.
fails to secure a Building Damaged by Fire when directed to do so;
iv.
is unresponsive to messages or uncontactable to the City's attempts to
notify,
the City may cause the Building Damaged by Fire, or portions thereof, to be
secured against unauthorized entry
c) Where a Vacant Building, Unoccupied Building or a Building Damaged by Fire is
boarded, or required to be boarded, the boarding materials shall be installed and
maintained in good repair and, unless inherently resistant to deterioration,
boarding materials shall be treated with a protective coating of paint or equivalent
weather-resistant material.
Page 6
By-Law No 96/2022.
8.
INSPECTION AND ENFORCEMENT POWERS
a) Every Officer shall be authorized to enforce the provisions of this By-law.
b) Every Officer may enter on land at any reasonable time for the purpose of
carrying out an inspection to determine whether the provisions of this By-law are
being complied with.
c) Every Officer may require information from any person concerning a matter
related to the inspection.
d) Every Officer may, in writing, extend any of the time frames for compliance in this
By-law where it is reasonable in the circumstances to do so.
e) Officers may also rely on the authorities, if required, of the City's Property Entry
By-law and any other authorizing by-law or statute.
9.
ANNUAL INTERIOR INSPECTIONS
In addition to any other inspections of a Vacant Building as required or permitted under
this By-law or any applicable legislation, a Municipal Law Enforcement Officer may, at
least once each calendar year, conduct an interior inspection of a building on a vacated
property after providing reasonable notice to the Owner.
10.
FEE FOR REGISTRATION, RENEWALS, ANNUAL INSPECTIONS
The City may charge fees for registration of a Vacant Building and any subsequent
inspections of Vacant Buildings or Unoccupied Building and such fees shall be in
accordance with the City's User Fee By-law as amended from time to time and any
successor by-laws.
11.
ORDERS/ENFORCEMENT
a) An Officer who believes a building to be a Vacant Building, may make an Order
requiring the building to be secured against unauthorized entry.
b) An Officer who believes a building to be an Unoccupied Building that requires
securing may make an Order requiring the building to be secured against
unauthorized entry.
c) An Officer who believes a building to be a Vacant Building may make an Order to
the Owner requiring the Owner to make application and register the Vacant
Page 7
By-Law No 96/2022.
Building or provide proof of active occupancy at all times relevant.
d) An Officer may specify in an Order a prescribed a method of securing a Vacant
Building different than the methods set out in this By-law, where a previous
attempt to effectively secure the building was unsuccessful.
e) An Officer, in an Order, may require the Owner to conduct routine and regular
inspections of the property to ensure the property is secure and to maintain a
record of those inspections in a manner set out in the Order.
f) Where a specific method of securing the property, such as boarding in part or in
whole, is required to ensure that the vacant property remains secured against
unauthorized entry, the Order shall state this requirement.
g) Except where an Unsafe Condition or Hazard exists, an Order shall set out the
deadline by which the Vacant Building or Unoccupied Building must be secured.
The Owner shall have a minimum of two business days to secure the Vacant
Building or Unoccupied Building if the Order is hand delivered or electronically
communicated to the Owner. The Owner shall have a minimum of five (5)
business days to secure the Vacant Building or Unoccupied Building if the Order
is only posted.
h) Where an Owner:
i. indicates an intention not to comply with the Order; or
ii. does not comply with the requirements of this By-law or the Order;
or
iii. is unresponsive to messages or uncontactable to the City's
attempts to notify; or
iv. fails to secure the building to the satisfaction of the City by the
deadline set out in the Order;
the City may cause the Vacant Building or Unoccupied Building to be secured
against unauthorized entry at the expense of the Owner.
i) Where, in the opinion of the Officer an unsafe Condition or Hazard exists at a
Vacant Building or Unoccupied Building, the Officer may cause the building to be
secured against unauthorized entry without prior to a notice or Order being
issued. Notice of the action taken in these circumstances shall be posted at the
subject property and then sent to to the Owner at the address provided and shall
include an invoice for the amount owing for the City's actions.
j) Notwithstanding, that a building may meet the definitions of a Vacant Building or
Unoccupied Building under this By-Law, included a building that is registered
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By-Law No 96/2022.
under this By-law, nothing in this By-law prevents an Order to repair or demolish
the Vacant Building or Unoccupied Building from being issued under the City's
Municipal Standards For Property By-law for the same Vacant Building or
Unoccupied Building.
k) Any such Order issued under the Municipal Standards for Property By-law shall
have paramountcy over the provisions in this By-Law, to the extent of any conflict
between them.
12.
OBSTRUCTION PROHIBITED
a) No person, including the Owner, shall impede, interfere with, or obstruct an
Officer in the execution of their duties and the inspection of property required
under the By-law by doing any act or refusing any Officer direction including
request for access to enter and inspect any property or structure thereon except
those actual areas used as a dwelling unit.
b) No person shall obstruct an Officer by providing false or misleading information.
c) It is an Offence to obstruct an Officer in the discharge of their duties.
13.
WORK ORDER
a) Where the Officer has reasonable grounds to believe that a contravention of this
By-law has occurred, the Officer may make an Order requiring the person who
contravened this By-law to do work to correct the contravention.
b) An Order shall set out:
i.
reasonable particulars of the contravention adequate to identify the
contravention and the location of the land on which the contravention
occurred; and
ii.
the work or remedial action required to be done and the date by which
the work or remedial action must be done.
c) An Order may require work or remedial action to be done even though the facts
which constitute the contravention of this By-law were present before this By-law
came into force.
d) Any person who fails to comply with an Order issued under this By-law, is guilty
of an offence.
14.
SERVICE OF NOTICES/ORDERS
a) An Order to secure a Vacant Building against unauthorized entry may be hand
delivered to the Owner or posted at the site of the Vacant Building;
b) An Order may be delivered in person to an Owner or occupant at the address of
lands that are subject of the Order or left with an inmate therein that is over the
apparent age of eighteen years; or
Page 9
By-Law No 96/2022.
c) An order may be sent via e-mail or text to an e-mail address or phone number
that has been supplied for a communication purpose and will be deemed served
only when such e-mail or text is acknowledged as being received and is not an
auto-reply; or
d) An Order may be sent registered mail to the last known address supplied to the
City's tax office and shall be deemed to be delivered on the fifth (5th) day after the
date mailed; or
e) An Order may be posted in a conspicuous place on the property or placed in any
open mail receptacle in proximity to the main entrance and shall be deemed to be
delivered on the seventh (7th) day after being affixed/deposited.
15.
REMEDIAL ACTION
a) If a person fails to do any matter or thing as directed or required by this By-law,
including to comply with an Order under this By-law, the City may, in default of it
being done by the person directed or required to do it, do the matter or thing at
the person(s) expense. The City will invoice the Owner of all costs owing for
actions taken by the City, but in default of receiving full payment of the invoice,
the City may recover the costs of doing a matter or thing from the person directed
or required to do it by instituting legal action or by adding the costs to the tax roll
for the property and collecting them in the same manner as property taxes.
b) The costs incurred by the City to take corrective actions on behalf of the Owner,
as authorized by this By-law, shall include any fees and charges authorized by
the City in accordance with the User Fee By-law in relation to the matters
identified in the By-law.
16.
GENERAL PROVISIONS
a) Where an Officer finds that measures taken pursuant to an Order have been
insufficient to keep a Vacant Building or Unoccupied Building secured against
unauthorized entry, subsequent Orders may be issued requiring additional
measures to be taken by the Owner.
b) It is an offence for any person other than the Owner to remove, tear down, or
interfere with any notice or Order posted on the property.
c) Every Owner shall comply with an Order to secure a Vacant Building or
Unoccupied Building against unauthorized entry.
d) It is an offence for an Owner to fail to apply to register every Vacant Building or
renew a registration as required under this By-law;
Page 10
By-Law No 96/2022.
e) It is an offence to provide false, inaccurate, or misleading contact information as
required for initial registration, changes in registration, or at renewal of same;
f) It is an offence to fail to update the Registry to reflect a change in ownership of a
registered property;
g) It is an offence to fail to properly secure a building that is Vacant Building or
Unoccupied Building so as to prevent unauthorized entry to anyone other than
the Owner or authorized persons.
17.
OFFENCE
Any person who fails to comply with any of the requirements of this By-law is guilty of an
offence and shall upon conviction be liable to a penalty as set out in Section 61 of the
Provincial Offences Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 33, as amended from time to time, or any
successor thereof.
18.
PENALTIES
a) Any person who contravenes a provision of this By-law is also subject to s
system of fines set out in section 429 of the Municipal Act, 2001, any and all
contraventions of this By-law are designated as continuing offences for each day
they continue.
b) Every person who is convicted of an offence is liable to a minimum fine of three
hundred dollars ($300.00) and a maximum fine of five thousand dollars
($5,000.00) for the first offence and a maximum fine of ten thousand dollars
($10,000.00) for any subsequent conviction under the By-law to the maximum
prescribed in the Municipal Act 2001.
c) In addition to the fine amounts set out in section 17(2), for each day or part of a
day that an offence continues, the minimum fine shall be three hundred dollars
($300) per day or part day for the first conviction, but the total of all daily fines
shall not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) for the first conviction where the
convictions are registered to a person that is not a corporation.
d) Where a corporation is convicted of a second and subsequent conviction, the
minimum fine shall not be less than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each
subsequent conviction to a maximum fine of one hundred thousand dollars
($100,000).
e) In addition to any monetary penalty any court of competent jurisdiction may,
pursuant to section 431 of the Municipal Act, issue an order prohibiting the
continuation or repetition of the offence by the person convicted.
Page 11
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19.
SEVERABILITY
Each and every of the provisions of this By-law is severable and if any provision of this
By-law should for any reason be declared invalid by any court, it is the intention and
desire of this Council that each and every of the then remaining provisions hereof shall
remain in full force and effect.
20.
CONFLICTS
Where a provision of this Chapter conflicts with the provisions of another Bylaw, Act, or
Regulation in force within the municipality, the provision, which establishes the hher
standards to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the occupants and the general
public or where it gives greater effect to the purpose of this by-law, it shall prevail.
21.
EFFECT
This by-law shall come into force and effect on the date it is passed.
Enacted and passed this12th day of September, A.D. 2022 as witnessed by the Seal of
the Corporation and the hands of its proper Officers.
Bill Mauro
Mayor
Krista Power
City Clerk
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By-Law No 96/2022.