Legality of clotheslines comes up at council meeting

By James Tubb on June 22, 2022.

COLLIN GALLANT

cgallant@medicinehatnews.com
Twitter: CollinGallant

Clotheslines are not illegal, city council was informed on Monday night after a councillor raised a complaint from the public, but condo associations and apartment block owners may have the authority to regulate their use or ban them outright.

The matter arose at the end of Monday’s meeting when Coun. Shila Sharps took advantage of the “new business” portion of the agenda to query staff members about any hurdles in city bylaws that would restrict a person hanging out their wash to dry.

She said a resident had contacted her claiming she was prevented from stringing up a line by a building manager, who claimed city bylaw as the reason against it.

“We don’t regulate it, and we would, in fact, see a value to it,” said Rochelle Pancoast, managing director of the city’s strategic management office, which oversees the planning department. 

“You don’t need a development permit. This is likely a condo-level (policy).”

Sharps said it’s a common-sense, environmentally-friendly way to do laundry and cut down energy use, and said the city should investigate how to extend “a right to dry” to residents of multi-family dwellings.

Mayor Linnsie Clark said the method could be promoted, but “keep in mind that private (owners of) property can set guidelines within reason” about the use of the property.

The issue was forwarded to the utility and infrastructure committee for study along with a question about potential programming to encourage rain barrels to cut down on water use. The parks department, in a separate division, has a pilot program to offer rain barrels to those who register as volunteers to care for trees on public lands and boulevards.

The utility department’s HatSmart program has focused on reducing electricity and gas consumption, not water, because those programs are paid from fees collected on excess power and gas use, council heard.

E-meetings

Medicine Hat city council has extended its ability to hold meetings via video conference or electronically.

A bylaw to that effect passed all three readings Monday. It only became an issue for council— which had allowed attendees to video conference in to committee gatherings since early 2020 — after an interim provision from Alberta Health authorities expired in March this year. Changes in the Municipal Government Act this year required local councils to enact bylaws to continue the practice.

The local bylaw extends to all standing committees, advisory boards, commissions and working groups.

 

Office approved

An industrial building located near the Ross Creek will be allowed to redevelop a portion of its bays into office space after council approved a change-of-use permit in the direct control zone.

The parcel containing the Ross Creek Business Centre building at 851 Industrial Ave., is partly located in a flood way, though the building is entirely within a flood fringe zone. That, in part, is a reason for the restrictive “direct control” zoning included in the city’s Historic Clay District planning overlay. That document suggests varied and improved developments, with council agreeing unanimously in approving the permit, which requires new flood proofing standards on the construction.

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