Following resident concerns about noise and safety, the City of Orillia is going to review its firework regulations.
Coun. Tim Lauer brought forward the inquiry at Monday’s council meeting after a discussion with a resident.
“What the big concern is with fireworks – (it’s) not necessarily on being woken up – but it's people with pets,” Lauer said. “Some dogs, some cats react very seriously to fireworks, and the constituent that is asking me to look into this is not totally against fireworks, but there needs to be some predictability or something.”
Fireworks are regulated under Chapter 938 of the city’s Municipal Code, a section that Lauer said carries some “vagueness.”
“The current bylaw, it's not an outright prohibition; it is based on complaint, so you have to complain about it,” Lauer said. “Then (bylaw has) to find out where the fireworks came from, and the fireworks show was like 15 minutes in a backyard, so who knows, so enforcement doesn't happen.”
“I'm asking that it just be reviewed, if it can be made more efficient, or if it needs to be changed.”
Coun. Janet-Lynne Durnford agreed.
“I've also had some correspondence about this, and I agree that perhaps a proactive approach to firework detonation is a better approach rather than a complaint-based approach,” she said.
Durnford also successfully proposed an amendment to Lauer’s motion, which will see city staff investigate safety concerns on the detonation of fireworks, along with reviewing current regulations.
“I also have had some residents who are very concerned about the safety (and) the fire safety of fireworks,” she said. “Apparently, we have some neighbourhoods where fireworks are being set off in backyards and in parks that are very dry, and I think there's a lot of awareness right now (of) what's happening in the suburbs of Halifax.”
Council directed city staff to prepare a report on the city’s firework regulations and safety concerns by Jan. 31, 2024.
