This is the exact embedded text of the captured official document.
Snapshot 47e964bce225 · verified 2026-06-04 ·
original document ·
archived snapshot ·
unofficial consolidation, the official version is held by the municipal clerk.
THE TOWN OF THE CITY OF DAWSON
BYLAW #07-03
As amended by Bylaw #08-04
A Bylaw to regulate the proper maintenance of property and the abatement of
nuisances, including property or things that:
(a) Affect the safety, health and welfare of people in the neighborhood; or
(b) Affect the amenity of a neighborhood.
WHEREAS section 265 of the Municipal Act, (Chapter 154, RSY, 2002), and amendments
thereto, provides that a council may pass bylaws for municipal purposes respecting
(a)
The safety, health, and welfare of people and the protection of persons and property,
including fire protection, fireworks, other explosives, firearms, weapons or devices, ambulance
services, emergency services and other emergencies;
(b)
Subject to the Building Standards Act, building standards or codes, and regulation, the
construction, demolition, removal, or alteration of any building or other structure;
(c)
Subject to the Highways Act, the management and control of municipal highways,
including temporary and permanent opening and closing, sidewalks, boulevards, all property
adjacent to highways, whether publicly or privately owned, naming of highways, and lighting of
highways;
(d)
Nuisances, unsightly property, noise and pollution and waste in or on public or private
property;
(e)
Vegetation and activities in relation to it, and the control, health and safety of, and
protection from, wild and domestic animals, including insects and birds
THEREFORE, pursuant to the provisions of the Municipal Act of the Yukon Territory, the
Council of the Town of the City of Dawson, in open meeting assembled, HEREBY ENACT AS
FOLLOWS:
Part I - Interpretation
Short Title
1. This Bylaw may be cited as The Property Maintenance & Nuisance Abatement
Bylaw #07-03.
Purpose
2. The purpose of this Bylaw is to provide for the proper maintenance of property and the
abatement of nuisances, including property or things that:
(a) Affect the safety, health and welfare of people in the neighborhood; or
(b) Affect the amenity of a neighborhood.
Definitions
3. In this Bylaw:
(a) "accessory building" means a subordinate building and/or structure, the use of
which is incidental to that of the main building or buildings on the same lot or
building site; but not including any building used for living or sleeping quarters.
(b) "building" means a building within the meaning of The National Fire Code of
Canada 2005.
(c) "bylaw officer" means an individual appointed by Council to act on behalf of the
City of Dawson to enforce bylaws.
(d) "City" means the Town of the City of Dawson;
(e) "Council" means the Council of the Town of the City of Dawson;
(f) "dwelling unit" means a room or series of rooms of complementary use operated
as a housekeeping unit, used or intended to be used as a domicile by one or more
persons and usually containing cooking, eating, living, sleeping and sanitary
facilities;
(g) "graffiti" means any drawing, inscription, writing or other mark that disfigures or
defaces any building, accessory building, fence or other structure, however made,
or otherwise affixed;
(h) "habitable room" means a room in a dwelling unit used or intended to be used for
living, sleeping, cooking or eating purposes or any combination thereof; but does
not include a bathroom, laundry, pantry, lobby, stairway, closet, service room or
other space for service and maintenance of the dwelling unit;
(i) "junked vehicle" means any automobile, tractor, truck, trailer or other motor
vehicle that:
(i) either:
(a) has no valid license plates attached to it; or
(b) is in a rusted, wrecked, partly wrecked, dismantled, partly
dismantled, inoperative or abandoned condition; and
(ii) is located on private land, but that:
(a) is not within a structure erected in accordance with any law
respecting the erection of buildings and structures in force within
the City; and
(b) does not form a part of a business enterprise lawfully being
operated on that land;
(j) "motor vehicle" shall have the same meaning given it in of the Motor Vehicles
Act;
(k) "nuisance" means:
(a) a condition of property; or
(b)
a thing;
That affects or may affect the amenity of a neighborhood or the safety,
health and welfare of people in the neighborhood, and includes:
(i)
a building in a ruinous or dilapidated state of repair;
(ii)
an unoccupied building that is damaged and is an imminent danger to
public safety;
(iii)
land that is overgrown with grass and weeds;
(iv)
untidy and unsightly property;
(v)
junked vehicles; and
(vi)
open excavations on property;
(l) "occupant" means an occupant of land and includes the resident occupant of land
of, if there is no resident occupant, the person entitled to the possession thereof, a
leaseholder or a person having or enjoying in any way or for any purpose
whatsoever the use of the land otherwise than as owner, whether or not the land
or part thereof is an unsurveyed area, and includes a squatter;
(m) "officer" means a Bylaw Officer of the City, or a member of the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police;
(n) "owner" means a person who has any right, title, estate or interest in land or
buildings other than that of a mere occupant, tenant or mortgagee;
(o) "property" means land or buildings or both;
(p) "property owner" means the owner as registered with the Registrar of the Yukon
Land Title Office or the owner's authorized representative;
(q) "structure" means anything erected or constructed, the use of which requires
temporary or permanent location on, or support of, the soil, or attached to
something having permanent location on the ground or soil; but not including
pavements, curbs, walks or open air surfaced areas; and
Responsibility
4. Unless otherwise specified, the owner of a property, including land, buildings and
structures, shall be responsible for carrying out the provisions of this Bylaw.
Part II - Nuisances
Nuisances Prohibited Generally
1. No person shall cause or permit a nuisance to occur or remain on any property owned
by that person.
Dilapidated Buildings
2. No person shall cause or permit a building or structure to deteriorate into a ruinous or
dilapidated state such that the building or structure:
(a) Is dangerous to the public health or safety; or
(b) Substantially depreciates the value of other land or improvements in the
neighborhood.
Unoccupied Buildings
3. (1) No person shall cause or permit an unoccupied building to become damaged or to
deteriorate into a state of disrepair such that the building is an imminent danger to
public safety.
(2) The owner of a vacant building must maintain it in compliance with the standards
set out in this Bylaw.
(3) The owner of a vacant building must ensure that the building is secure from
unauthorized entry by ensuring:
(a) All exterior doors to the building are operational and fit tightly within their
frames when closed and are locked so as to prevent entry. All windows are
either permanently sealed or locked so as to prevent entry and all windows and
doors are in good repair; or
(b) All doors, windows and other openings at the basement and first floor levels
are covered with a solid piece of plywood at least 11(mm) 1/2(in) thick and
secured with nails or screws. All doors, windows and other openings above the
first floor are covered with a solid piece of plywood at least 8(mm) 1/4(in)
thick and secured with nails or screws.
Untidy and Unsightly Property
4. No person shall cause or permit any land or buildings to become untidy and unsightly
due to graffiti or the accumulation of new or used lumber, cardboard, paper,
newspapers, appliances, tires, cans, barrels, scrap metal or other waste materials or
junk.
Junked Vehicles
5. No person shall cause or permit any junked vehicle to be kept on any land owned by
that person.
Open Excavations
6. No person shall cause or permit any basement, excavation, drain, ditch, watercourse,
pond, surface water, swimming pool or other structure to exist in or on any private
land or in or about any building or structure which is dangerous to the public safety
or health.
Graffiti
7. No person shall permit graffiti to remain on any building, accessory building, fence or
other structure on property owned by that person.
Damage to Public Owned Grass Areas
8.No person shall drive upon and no motorized vehicle shall be allowed on or across the
grass of any public owned grassed in areas within the City except when it is
necessary to cross part of the area for the purpose of delivery or removal of furniture,
household goods, or other like chattels, in which case planks of sufficient length and
width shall be placed over the area in front of the building in or from which such
chattels or goods shall be delivered or removed, so that damage or injury shall not
ensue to that part of the said area, and the person responsible for such transporting of
goods and chattels shall be liable should the area not be in as good condition as it was
prior to.
Highway Names
9. (1) City Council shall be responsible for the assigning of names and/or numbers
to highways within the City and for the placing of signs therefore.
(2) Every person who erects, removes, defaces or damages any such sign as
aforesaid in any way whatsoever, shall be liable for an infraction of this bylaw.
Earth Removal
10. No person shall take up or dig or carry away any of the earth, sand or gravel in or from
any highway, sidewalk, alley, lane, or park within the City or
from any real property owned by the City, without the written permission of the
Superintendent of Public Works or the CAO.
Incessant Noises
11. (1) Everyone who makes or causes noises or sounds in or on a highway or
elsewhere in the City which disturbs or tend to disturb the quiet, peace, rest,
enjoyment, comfort or convenience of the neighborhood or of persons in
the vicinity, shall upon warning from any Bylaw Officer cease making or
causing such noises forthwith, or shall be deemed to have contravened the
provisions of the bylaw.
(2) Construction equipment, light work equipment including tractors, lawnmowers,
shall not be operated between the hours of eleven o'clock at night and seven o'clock
in the morning (11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.) in residential areas except with the
permission of the Bylaw Officer.
Election Posters
12. Election Posters may be erected but must be removed within seven days after the
election to which they apply. Failure to remove said poster(s) within the specified
seven days shall be deemed a contravention of this bylaw.
Air Pollution
13. No person being the owner or occupier of real property or his agent, shall within the
City commit any act or condition of air pollution or discharge or allow the discharge
into the atmosphere of any fumes, noxious gases, cinders, sparks, ash or other solid
or liquid particles, or effluvia, or any other products of combustion to any extent or
degree, that may be or are liable to become injurious to the health, comfort, property
or welfare of any one or more of the residents or inhabitants of the City.
Public Utilities
14. (1) No gas, electric, light, telephone, power, pipeline or water company, radio or
television broadcasting company, or closed circuit television company shall use the
highways within the City for the construction of the above mentioned utilities until
they first supply the office of the Superintendent of Public Works with complete
plans and specifications of the proposed work or undertaking to be constructed and
have obtained the written permission of the Superintendent of Public Works which
shall be subject to the approval of the City Council
(2) No construction pursuant to above shall commence until a signed agreement
indemnifying and saving harmless the City of Dawson is received along with a copy
of the related insurance policy showing loss payable to the City.
Boarding up of Property
15.
(1) Where plywood is applied to openings, it is to be installed from the exterior, and
fitted entirely within the frames in a manner that does not detract from the value
of other properties in the immediate vicinity.
(2) Where the building is within a zone where architectural Historic Guidelines
apply as defined by Zoning and Historical Control Bylaw #97-25 and amendments
to and replacements thereof, the plywood must be:
a,
Painted black or in a colour that matches the exterior of the structure
b,
Painted with a window design that would meet the Historic Guidelines
requirements for an actual window
Part III - Property Maintenance
Duty to Maintain
1. (1) All property, including land, buildings and structures, shall be maintained in
accordance with the minimum standards prescribed in this Part.
(2) No person shall cause or permit the occupancy or use of any property, including
land, building or structures that do not conform to the minimum standards.
(3) Every occupant of a property, including land, buildings and structures, shall:
(a) Keep in a clean and sanitary condition that part of the property that the
occupant occupies or controls;
(b) Maintain exits to the exterior of the building in a safe and unobstructed
condition;
(c) Dispose of garbage and refuse and keep the property free from rubbish and
other debris which might constitute fire, health or safety hazards; and
(d) Keep any supplied fixtures clean and sanitary and exercise reasonable
care in their proper use and operation.
(e) Not use any property within a residential area as defined by the Zoning Bylaw
for the storage, repair, cleaning, maintenance, collection or servicing of
equipment such as bulldozers, graders, backhauls, loaders, cranes, tractors, semi-
trailers or a combination thereof, or other similar heavy equipment.
Maintenance of Yards and Accessory Buildings
Application
2. This Division applies to all accessory buildings and yards within the City.
Maintenance of Yards
3. (1) A yard shall be kept free and clean from:
(a) Garbage and junk;
(b) Junked vehicles and dismantled machinery;
(d) Holes and excavations that could cause an accident;
(e) An infestation of rodents, vermin or insects;
(f) Dead or hazardous trees; and
(g) Sharp or dangerous materials.
(h) Accumulation of appliances, parts and accessories
(2) A yard shall be graded in such a manner so as to prevent:
(a) Excessive accumulation of water; and
(b) Excessive dampness accumulating near buildings or structures.
Outdoor Storage of Materials
4. (1) Any building materials, lumber, scrap metal, boxes or similar items stored in a
yard shall be neatly stacked in piles.
Refrigerators and Freezers
5. Any refrigerator or freezer left in a yard and not in use shall first have its hinges,
latches, lid, door or doors removed, if in use it shall be securely locked.
Snow Removal
6. "Roof"
Every owner/occupier of any real property shall remove snow, ice or rubbish from the
roof or other part of any structure thereon, adjacent to or abutting any portion of any
highway, sidewalk or footpath, immediately after such accumulation occurs or when
requested to do so by a Bylaw Officer of the City of Dawson.
7. "Sidewalk"
(1) Every owner/occupier of any real property shall remove snow, ice or rubbish from:
(a) from all sidewalk which abuts any side of their property;
(b) from any path leading from a sidewalk abutting their property to the roadway;
and
(c) between any sidewalk abutting their property and a crosswalk;
(2) No owner/occupier shall permit icicles to accumulate on the eaves or gutters of any
building so as to become dangerous to persons passing on a sidewalk, street or
pathway.
(3) No owner/occupier shall deposit snow and ice upon any street or sidewalk in such a
way as to create a safety hazard.
Walkways, Driveways and Parking Spaces
8. If a walkway, driveway or parking space is provided, it shall be maintained so as to
afford safe passage thereon under normal use and weather conditions.
Waste Disposal
9. Every building shall be provided with a sufficient number of receptacles to contain all
waste in accordance with the provisions of the City's Garbage Bylaw.
Accessory Buildings
10. (1) Accessory buildings shall be kept:
(a) In good repair;
(b) Free of infestation by rodents, vermin and insects;
(c) Free of health, fire and safety hazards; and
(d) Free of graffiti.
(2)Accessory buildings shall be equipped with doors or closures and shall be kept
secured so as to prevent unauthorized entry.
Fences
11. Fences shall be maintained in a safe and reasonable state of repair and free of graffiti.
Part IV - Enforcement, Offences and Penalties
Compliance with Other Legislation
1. An owner is responsible for and is not excused from ascertaining and complying with
the requirements of any Federal, Territorial or other Municipal legislation; or the
condition of any easement, covenant, building scheme, or development agreement
affecting the building or land.
Enforcement of Bylaw
2. (1) The administration and enforcement of this Bylaw is hereby delegated to the Chief
Administrative Officer of the City of Dawson.
(2) The Chief Administrative Officer the City of Dawson is hereby authorized to
further delegate the administration and enforcement of this Bylaw to a Bylaw
Officer(s).
Inspections
3. (1) The inspection of property by the City to determine if this Bylaw is being complied
with is hereby authorized.
(2) Inspections under this Bylaw shall be carried out in accordance with The National
Fire Code of Canada 2005 and the National Building Code of Canada 2005 and City
Bylaws.
(3) No person shall obstruct a bylaw officer who is authorized to conduct an inspection
under this section, or a person who is assisting a bylaw officer.
Order to Remedy Contraventions
4. (1) If a bylaw officer finds that a person is contravening this Bylaw, the officer may, by
written order, require the owner or occupant of the property within the time specified
on the order to remedy the contravention.
(2) If the person does not comply with the directions within the specified time, the
municipality will take the action or measure at the expense of the person.
Service of Order to Remedy
5. (1) Every Order made under this Bylaw must be served:
(a) In the case of service on an individual, personally or by mailing it by registered
mail to address on the Assessment Roll.
(b) In the case of service on a corporation, personally on a director, officer, or manager
or the corporation, or by leaving it at or mailing it by registered mail to the address
on the Assessment Roll.
(c) An order served by registered mail is deemed to have been received on the seventh
day following the date of it's mailing
Review by Council of Order to Remedy
6. (1) A person who receives a written order under Section 34 may request council by
written notice to review the Order within 14 days after the Order is received
(2) After reviewing the order, the council may confirm, vary, substitute, or cancel the
Order.
City Remedying Contraventions
7. The City may take whatever actions or measures are necessary to remedy a contravention
of this Bylaw.
Civil Action to Recover Costs
8. The City may collect any unpaid expenses and costs incurred in remedying a
contravention of this Bylaw by civil action for debt in a court of competent jurisdiction.
Adding Amounts to Tax Roll
9. The City may add any unpaid expenses and costs incurred by the City in remedying a
contravention of this Bylaw to the taxes on the property on which the work was done.
Emergencies
10. In the event that it becomes an emergency to remedy a contravention of this Bylaw, the
City may take whatever actions or measures are necessary to eliminate the emergency.
Offences
11. (1) No person shall:
(a) Fail to comply with an order made pursuant to this Bylaw;
(b) Obstruct or hinder any municipal inspector or any other person acting under the
authority of this Bylaw; or
(c) Fail to comply with any other provision of this Bylaw.
(2) Any person who contravenes any provision of this bylaw is guilty of an offence;
(a) A fine not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2000.00) or to imprisonment for
six months or to both where proceedings are commenced pursuant to the
summary convictions provisions of the Criminal Code of Canada;
(b) A fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) or to imprisonment for six
months or both where proceedings are commenced pursuant to the Summary
Convictions Act of the Yukon.
(c) In the case of a continuing offence, to a maximum daily fine of not more than
$500 per day.
Repealed
12. Bylaw 88-21 and its amendments thereto are hereby repealed
Coming Into Force
13. This Bylaw shall come into force on the day of its final passing.
READ A FIRST TIME THIS 3rd DAY OF APRIL, 2007.
READ A SECOND TIME THIS 26th DAY OF JUNE, 2007.
READ A THIRD TIME AND FINALLY PASSED THIS 10Th DAY OF
JULY, 2007.
Original Signed by:
John Steins
MAYOR
Paul Moore
CAO