Latest news with #WindsorOntario
CTV News
6 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
City to examine potential fee for homes with a certain number of vehicles
Should residents of a home with a certain number of vehicles have to pay a fee to help address issues around the demand for on-street parking in Windsor? Ward 8 Councillor Gary Kaschak said he's dealing with four issues around on-street parking in his ward. During Monday's council meeting, he delivered a petition from residents on Rose Court between Jos. St. Louis Avenue and Clemenceau Boulevard who are upset over limited on-street parking. Kaschak told the council they are seeing more and more cases of homes with eight to 12 people living in a single residence, with each person having their own vehicle, and in some cases parking commercial vehicles on city streets, which is putting a strain on the on-street parking system. 'They're working, have a company, or are self-employed and parking commercial vehicles on the street, taking up potential residential parking spots as well,' he said. 'We want people to work, and we want self-employment, but should all those vehicles be parked on residential streets as well.' He asked administration to look at options to alleviate the problem and the potential for a city bylaw for a maximum of four to six vehicles per residence, and anything above that would be subject to a yearly fee to be paid or added to their property tax bill. Kaschak said he just wants to see options to address the problem. 'Where the people can park their vehicles, the people who live in front of those homes or nearby, but also people with a lot of residents in their home, they may have to pay an extra fee moving forward to accommodate their vehicles and to be good neighbours as well,' he said. A report is expected to come back to a future meeting of city council. - Written by Rusty Thomson/AM800 News.
CBC
6 days ago
- General
- CBC
Militant approach needed to control Windsor's Canada goose population, says expert
Social Sharing Managing Windsor's population of Canada geese will require militant effort over multiple years to truly make a dent in the number of the birds throughout the city. That's according to Dan Frankian of Hawkeye Bird and Animal Control Specialists — a bird control expert with more than 36 years of experience managing animal populations. "They're coming after you and you're going after them, and we know how militant they can be," Frankian told CBC. The former Canadian Armed Forces sniper and master falconer has traveled all over the world to help large corporations and government agencies get bird populations under control. Frankian said dealing with Canada geese needs special diligence. "I mean, they call them the Canadian Air Force not for unknown reasons. These things are good, all right," Frankian advised. The City of Windsor has hired a contractor to remove 150 eggs from seven nesting locations in Windsor. It's a method that requires a permit from the federal government. Council approved a $30,000 geese management strategy as part of the city's annual operating budget earlier this year. Management plan a good start, says federal government Riverside-area councillor Jo-Anne Gignac pushed for action on the issue after she heard last summer from a constituent complaining about nearly colliding with geese while riding a bike on Ganatchio Trail. "He swerved to avoid them. He was thrown from his bike and spent four days in the hospital with a broken collar bone and six broken ribs," Gignac told council in June 2024. Geese crossing busy roads have led to other collisions in the city, in some cases sending people to hospital with serious injuries. "These flocks of geese just walking out into the road, people slamming on their brakes, and it's a mess," Gignac told council. But a spokesperson for the federal government said Windsor's management plan is a good starting point that's in line with what similar sized cities across Ontario have been doing. "However, habitat modification and education remain vital to mitigating human-goose conflicts in Windsor," wrote Samuel Lafontaine, a spokesperson for Environment and Climate Change Canada. The federal agency 430 permits regarding Canada geese have been issued across Canada since 2020, and 97 per cent of them include egg management methods. 'Do not let the population grow' The Canadian Wildlife Service says Canada geese lay two to eight eggs a year, starting when the adults are around three years old. The large birds nest in the spring in familiar areas for their entire lives — which can be as long as 25 years. That means one Canada goose could produce 176 eggs in its lifetime. According to the Canadian Wildlife Service, late April to early June is when geese are most aggressive — because they're motivated to protect their recently hatched goslings. Frankian said oils can be applied to eggs to prevent them from hatching — but that won't dissuade a Canada goose from nesting at a location again. He said the city's contractor should act like a predator to the full extent that the federal permit allows. "Destroy the nest, destroy the eggs, do it in front of the female," advised Frankian, who emphasized that the act needs to show the goose that all humans are a threat. "The basic thing is: Do not let the population grow." According to the City of Windsor, its federal permit only authorizes "the removal of nests and eggs during a defined period." But Frankian believes outright, obvious destruction of the nest and eggs is necessary for the plan to be truly effective. Otherwise, the goose will persist in nesting again. "You are trying to tell the goose, get out, don't come back," Frankian said. Windsor resorts to removing geese eggs for population control 9 minutes ago Duration 2:40 The City of Windsor has obtained a federal permit to remove 150 Canada goose eggs — part of an effort to control the local population of the large and persistent bird. But anti-goose expert Dan Frankian says the city will need to be militant about the plan. CBC's Chris Ensing reports. University sports fields protected by dogs This isn't the first time Windsor has tried to get geese out of popular park areas such as the riverfront trail. In 2019, city staff placed two-dimensional dog-shaped cutouts on the riverfront to try to scare away geese. The University of Windsor tried the same, then had a better idea: Employ an actual dog to chase the geese off campus sport areas. Winston, a St. Bernard-Mastiff mix, is owned by Rick Daly — manager of athletic facilities and services at the university. Twice daily, Winston runs through the track and football fields of the Toldo Lancer Centre, making life difficult for geese. "Ultimately it's just to annoy them so that they're not nasty," Daly explained. Daly consulted with golf course operators to find the right approach to preventing the accumulation of "geese content" — the term Daly uses for goose droppings. Daly also encourages fellow dog-owning staff members to bring their pets to campus and help out. "We simply just want to gently remove the geese from locating here." "The dogs won't necessarily catch them. They won't be able to." Daly said Winston gets paid for his work with treats and hugs. Mutli-year effort needed, says expert Frankian said that a dog can work to deter geese from frequenting a park — but it needs to be consistent. Chasing geese with dogs is the only method that doesn't require a federal permit, Frankian added. The stronger method would be to obtain a permit that allows for physical relocation of geese to other communities. "Geese molt," said Frankian. "In other words, these flight feathers entirely disappear. They fall off every year. They're flightless." That time of year is when experienced bird control professionals will slowly corral the geese into manageable groups that can be put into trucks and moved elsewhere. According to Frankian, the key is to outlast the geese with your efforts: You don't stop until the geese give up — which will take more than a few years. "When they give up, you do an extra year, and then you're done," Frankian said.
CTV News
27-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Downtown Mission plans move with Windsor's H4 to better serve clients — and neighbours
Leadership at the Downtown Mission says the Ouellette Avenue location was never meant to be permanent. Seen in Windsor, Ont. on May 27, 2025. (Travis Fortnum/CTV News Windsor) The Downtown Mission says it plans to move alongside Windsor's Homelessness and Housing Help Hub — a relocation that could significantly reshape how the city delivers support to its most vulnerable. Executive Director Rukshini Ponniah-Goulin told CTV News the Mission hopes to co-relocate with the H4 when the city finds a permanent site for the homelessness hub. 'We have every intention and hope of going there with them,' she said. 'Or relocating close to it, if not right on the property.' While the Mission has operated its shelter and services out of a building on Ouellette Avenue since 2017, Ponniah-Goulin said that site was never meant to be permanent. In a new location, she said she'd like to see features that support both clients and the surrounding neighbourhood. 'An enclosed space in the back for our clients to have some privacy,' she said. 'But also, so our neighbours — whether they be businesses or residential homeowners — don't necessarily have to be faced with the clients every day.' She said staff are already working closely with the city, as the search for a permanent home for the H4 resumes. Council voted this week to remove a previously imposed two-kilometre boundary from the downtown core, allowing potential H4 locations to be considered citywide. Mayor Drew Dilkens acknowledged the shift won't be easy. 'Nobody wants this next door to them,' he said. He added the city's goal is to find a location that works for the people who use the hub — and for those who live nearby. 'A lot of the behaviours that play out are unwanted behaviours by many of the residents,' Dilkens said. 'And so, we're going to try and find a location that makes sense within our city.' Water World was only intended as a temporary home for the H4 when it opened in 2020. A proposed move to Wellington Avenue was shelved late last year due to cost. The mayor said identifying a new location could still take years.
CBC
26-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Are backyard fires allowed in Windsor? Here's what you need to know
CBC's Chris Ensing explains what's allowed and what's not when it comes to having a fire in your backyard in Windsor — and what kind of fines you could face if you violate the bylaw.
CBC
23-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Using some fire pits, open air burning without a permit in Windsor will now land you a $570 fine
If a neighbour reports your backyard fire in Windsor this summer, be prepared to pay a hefty fine that covers the cost of the fire department's response. City council approved a new $570.50 fine for people starting fires on their property that don't fit within the city's bylaw. That's up from the $150 fine in 2024 — and Windsor's fire chief says they're not giving out any more warnings when they arrive on scene. "We've spent a number of months with stern warnings and that has now ceased," said fire chief James Waffle. "Everybody is getting billed." The bylaw does not allow wood burning fires in pits or steel drums unless it is approved by the fire department through the permit process. Approved outdoor cooking appliances include barbecues, pizza ovens and small fire pits that are propane or natural gas fired. Telling firefighters your fire is for cooking, or keeping a grill nearby, won't get you out of a fine. "We've seen a number of things over years, you know, rocks and tinfoil pretending to be baked potatoes, right? That's not an approved cooking appliance," Waffle said. The increased fine comes as the fire department handles higher annual call volumes for all types of events across the city. Waffle said the department doesn't drive around the city looking for backyard fires. "But if it comes in by complaint or through our dispatch system, we go." Responses are costly, pull away from other work May is typically the busiest time of the year for this type of call. Firefighters responded to 369 open burn calls in 2024, bucking a downward trend that started in 2020. Waffle said he did not yet have numbers about fines issued over the Victoria Day long weekend. The fine is set to match the Ontario Ministry of Transportation's fire department response rate, which is adjusted annually. These open air burn calls cost Windsor just over $200,000 in 2024, using last years figures. Waffle said another area of concern is what people are burning when they show up. "They're burning rubbish, plastics, metals, wood, grass clippings," said Waffle. He said one of the issues with these types of calls is how often it pulls firefighters away from the station. "It's a significant strain on our resources, particularly if and when a fire comes in that's at another location, you have a crew that's tied up," he said. These types of preventative bylaws are found at major urban centres throughout Ontario because a campfire in a backyard can be risky, said the chief. He said a backyard fire spreading and becoming a house fire happens on occasion, and that requires an even bigger response. "We're responding with more crews, unfortunately your bill gets even bigger," he said. The fire department doesn't receive many applications for open burn fire permits. There's been 11 since the permit system was adopted in 2023 and the fire department has only approved two.
