THUNDER BAY — The 2022 municipal election campaign is the first to be fought under a new city bylaw that manages the placement of candidates' campaign signs.
So far, the city has received few complaints about violations.
"Sign pollution" has been reduced significantly as a result of the prohibition against campaign signs on any public property including boulevards, and on any private property without consent.
Notably, the bylaw also restricts the size of signs, as well as the number of signs allowed on each lot.
It provides for fines of $300 to $5,000 "where compliance cannot be achieved," but bylaw enforcement officers aren't driving around looking for infractions and handing out tickets.
Formal complaints are investigated and dealt with by educating the candidates.
Doug Vincent, manager of licensing and enforcement for the city, says some people have called in to complain about a sign's size.
Under the bylaw, it can be no more than 1.2 meters wide, and not more than 2.0 meters high, except where a billboard sign or mobile sign is utilized under a valid permit.
Some candidates, Vincent said, "took full advantage of that, and have a sign that's up to two metres high and 1.2 metres wide," but no sign has exceeded those dimensions.
"Every one we've checked, we've validated," he said.
But a few cases of non-compliance with other parts of the bylaw have been noted.
"We've educated the candidate. Honest mistakes. And they've been corrected immediately," Vincent said.
In one instance, a candidate posted a mobile sign in a residential area.
There have also been some cases where too many signs have been erected on a commercial property.
The bylaw allows up to three signs on each private lot, but only one for every 500 metres of commercial or industrial property frontage, with permission.
Vincent said an unusual situation arose on Arthur Street, where Arthur Street Marketplace sits on two separate parcels of land.
That means candidates could legally put up two signs rather than one, but some erected more than two.
"We did have a complaint, and we dealt with it," he said, but added there has been no blatant defiance of the bylaw.
"They've all been very innocent," he said. "People haven't chosen to read certain sections, or have interpreted them wrongly. And sometimes 'monkey see, monkey do.' If they see too many signs because somebody [else] didn't read the bylaw, they then interpret it as that's how many they're allowed...we've had a few of those situations, but we've quickly had that resolved."
Vincent noted that it's unlikely anybody would knowingly break a bylaw when they're running for municipal office.
When this election is over, the city clerk's office will circulate a questionnaire seeking feedback on how the new bylaw worked.
Depending on the response, it's possible for amendments to be made before the next election.
