Barrie clarifies sign bylaw

UPDATE From Jack Gibbons Lake Simcoe Watch June 7 2019

On May 31st we received an email from Barrie’s bylaw enforcement officer stating that the City’s residents cannot put up lawn signs that ask Caroline Mulroney to help us save Lake Simcoe on private or public property.

In response to yesterday’s Lake Simcoe Watch bulletin, the Mayor’s Office has clarified that Barrie residents can place our lawn signs on their own private property. This is good news.

Nevertheless, according to the Mayor’s Office, local residents cannot put a lawn sign on the municipal road allowance in front of their homes. If they do, the City will remove the sign and fine Lake Simcoe Watch $76.50 per sign.

Do you know where your front yard ends and the municipal road allowance begins? A few of our supporters did not and an overzealous bylaw officer removed the signs and issued a hefty fine to Lake Simcoe Watch. Given that these signs were right in front of homes and most likely put there by the homeowners themselves, why did the bylaw officer not make any attempt to issue a warning/clarification or simply move the signs back? Why was his first contact with Lake Simcoe Watch sending us a $300 ticket?

We are asking the Mayor and Barrie council to correct this overreaction by their bylaw officer and cancel the fine issued to Lake Simcoe Watch. Citizens who want to voice their concerns about the health of Lake Simcoe should not be punished. If you agree, please let Mayor Lehman know. His email is officeofthemayor@barrie.ca.

City of Barrie bans Caroline Mulroney lawn signs

From Jack Gibbons Lake Simcoe Watch June 6 2019

According to the City of Barrie’s Municipal Law Enforcement Officer, Barrie residents cannot put up lawn signs that ask Attorney General Caroline Mulroney to help us save Lake Simcoe.

To add insult to injury, the City of Barrie has already removed four signs from our supporters’ front yards and fined Lake Simcoe Watch $306.

This is not right. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees all Canadians “freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression” subject only to “such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society”. The City of Barrie should not attempt to deny its residents the opportunity to express their views. Everyone in Barrie should have the right to show their support for saving Lake Simcoe.

What you can do:

Please ask Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman to direct City staff to not remove Caroline Mulroney lawn signs from the front yards of Barrie residents. You can contact Mayor Lehman by clicking here: officeofthemayor@barrie.ca.

To read my letter to Mayor Lehman please click here.

Please pass this message on to your friends.