By rdnewsNOW Staff

Vehicle Noise & Residential Livestock

Red Deer city council approves changes to Community Standards Bylaw

May 9, 2022 | 11:09 PM

Red Deer city council approved amendments to the Community Standards Bylaw Monday, as it relates to noise and livestock in the city.

The Community Standards Bylaw, originally adopted in 2007, was developed as a means of regulating certain activities, including noise, nuisances, unsightly premises, and public disturbances. The City says it has proven successful over the years in improving the aesthetics of the community. They say the proposed amendments are a result of public participation, operational needs and previous direction received from council.

READ: Livestock, shopping carts, vehicle noise: Red Deer city council discusses their regulation

Three options for addressing residential noise concerns were presented to council. The selected option retains the status quo and does not specify which period of the day specific noises or noise levels can occur. This option allows various City and RCMP employees to follow-up on noise complaints, where other options would require response from either Municipal Police Officers or RCMP officers and, according to administration, may be more difficult to enforce.

New limitations restrict vehicle noise to 92 decibels while at idle and 96 decibels while above idle.

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Councillor Victor Doerksen questioned the need for the expanded bylaw relating to vehicle noise. He said after downloading a decibel reader application on his cellphone, he actively went around the city to find vehicles and other sounds, like church services, that went above 96 decibels, but did not have success.

He then pointed to the current Community Standards Bylaw and Alberta Traffic Safety Act that both address excessive vehicle noise such as increasing RCMP acting authority and laws restricting certain mufflers and exhausts.

“We have all the tools in place that we need. I’m not sure we need to expand our bylaw to accomplish something that can already be accomplished with our existing bylaws and avenues,” said Doerksen.

“One of the things that legislators think they have to do is make laws,” he said. “Let’s only make laws that make sense.”

Councillor Cindy Jeffries, while stating she respected Councillor Doerksen’s attempts to reduce unnecessary laws, also said the amendment to the bylaw will provide an extra tool for officers while creating awareness for the public.

“I think it just helps us create that level of understanding. It also provides greater likelihood of conviction,” she said.

The amendment involving livestock, administration says, is intended to fill a gap until a full animal bylaw can be approved by council, anticipated by the end of 2022. The City says there is a need to address this specific category to help manage the ever-increasing volume of inquiries for residential livestock. The amendment recommends no livestock to be allowed on a residential site and sets out a penalty for those in breach of the bylaw. They claim this is in alignment with what they heard during previous public engagement on keeping animals within the city.

Additional information regarding shopping carts requested on April 25 is expected to be brought back for council consideration in four to six weeks.