At Monday night’s Council meeting, Council approved a new 24/7, centralized by-law enforcement model to be implemented as part of Oakville’s new Municipal Enforcement Strategy. The new service delivery model recommended by town staff aims to enhance customer service for residents relating to by-law issues and concerns and will be phased in over a five-year period beginning in 2017.
“Council requested a more responsive, convenient by-law enforcement service for Oakville residents,” said Mayor Rob Burton. “This new model allows residents to access the services they require 24 hours a day. I commend staff for their work in developing an even more user-friendly enforcement service.”
Currently, Town of Oakville by-law enforcement services are only available Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with no after hours or weekend enforcement. Parking enforcement is the exception which is provided on a 24/7 basis. In addition, enforcement responsibilities fall to various town departments, which can make it challenging for residents to contact the right area of enforcement when they want to report a concern. The new service delivery model will make it faster and easier for residents to get in touch with enforcement staff 24/7 so issues can be addressed in a timely manner.
Oakville's Municipal Enforcement Strategy was created based on recommendations identified from an internal audit in 2011 and direction from the 2015 Budget Committee for staff to review options for expanded by-law enforcement services. A thorough review of the town’s enforcement structure, predicted population growth, best practice scan of other municipal by-law enforcement models and feedback from various town departments also informed the strategy development.
Financial requirements to support the 24/7 centralized model will be presented to the Budget Committee this fall for approval before implementation begins in 2017. In the meantime, staff will be working to implement the progressive enforcement policy and responsibility matrix to clarify enforcement oversight among town departments.
To read the staff report, review the agenda from the March 29, 2016 Administrative Services Committee meeting on the Agendas & Minutes page at oakville.ca.