Town of Oakville increasing parking fines to ‘control overcrowding’

Published August 13, 2020 at 2:42 pm

The Torn of Oakville is increasing parking fines in some areas.

The Torn of Oakville is increasing parking fines in some areas.

In an official release, the town said it amended its traffic and parking by-laws “in an effort to control the overcrowding at the town’s lakefront parks and address associated parking issues on nearby residential streets”.

Staff will be posting signs on certain streets surrounding the town’s lakefront parks identifying them as increased fine zones. 

The enforcement period runs from Aug. 21 until Oct. 31, 2020, with fines set at $100.

The town says “park parking lots will be open, but once full, visitors will be encouraged to come back another time as parking on residential streets will result in increased fines”.

Municipal enforcement staff will be providing regular patrols of these areas, according to the town.

“While we have all done a great job at flattening the curve, we are still in a pandemic and must all continue to do our part and follow public health directions including practicing physical-distancing,” said Mayor Rob Burton. 

“Since we opened our parks earlier this summer we have faced a situation where they are often overcrowded resulting in individuals often coming too close to others. In addition, once park parking lots are full, the town is faced with rampant parking issues on streets surrounding our lakefront parks, prompting safety concerns for residents.”

As an example, the Town of Oakville said between April 1 and Aug. 11, 806 parking tickets were issued in the residential area around Bronte Beach and Bronte Heritage Parks alone.

In addition to overcrowding, issues at town parks have included littering; alcohol and drug use; instances of crime; bonfires and individuals entering parks after the parks are closed, according to the town’s release.

“We want to continue to have our parks open to the public, for everyone to enjoy responsibly. As we continue under emergency orders, by putting these regulations in place, we can help encourage physical-distancing and limit the risk of spreading COVID-19,” concluded Burton.

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