Fort St. John could introduce tougher financial penalties for properties that repeatedly require police, fire or bylaw responses as council looks for new ways to address nuisance and safety concerns.
At Monday’s regular council meeting, Councillor Trevor Bolin brought forward two notices of motion aimed at changing how the city deals with problem properties and clarifying its after-hours animal control services.
One proposal would update the fee structure under the city’s Property Maintenance and Nuisance Bylaw No. 2434 to better reflect the cost of repeated emergency responses.
Bolin said the existing bylaw was established several years ago and no longer reflects the costs associated with responding to serious incidents.
“It is now severely more expensive when we dispatch police to shootings and resources to houses that continue to steal people’s stuff,” Bolin said.
Under the proposed changes, the city would look at recovering costs when RCMP, fire, bylaw officers or provincial agencies are repeatedly called to the same property.
The proposal would also introduce a public 60-day billing cycle for properties that accumulate significant emergency response costs.
Bolin is also proposing a separate “Good Neighbour Bylaw,” based on a model used in Williams Lake.
The proposed framework would use a three-strike system for residential or commercial properties linked to repeated issues, including stolen property, drug activity and gang-related crime.
“If there’s three strikes against that property… there is a $1,200 bylaw [fine] that then goes onto the property on that third complaint being investigated,” Bolin said.
“It pays to be a good neighbour; it’s costly to be a bad one.”
Bolin said the proposed measures would give the city another tool to address properties that repeatedly create problems for surrounding neighbourhoods.
“At some point in time, you’ve got to be liable for how you decide to live in Fort St. John, and I think this is a way we can start to look at that,” he said.
Bolin also raised concerns about how the city communicates its after-hours animal control services.
The city currently provides after-hours coverage for urgent animal control matters, but Bolin said information on the city’s website does not clearly explain that option to residents.
“It doesn’t advise people that if it’s an issue with a pet, or something along those lines, that there’s an emergency access for that,” Bolin said.
“It would be great for people to understand that if they do have an issue with a pet that is at large, that there is a 24-hour or after-hours service for that.”
City staff said they would update the public information and ensure relevant policies are consistent with those of local partners, including the BC SPCA.
The two notices of motion concerning nuisance bylaws are expected to return to council for debate at a future meeting.
