LETTER

Inform us citizens, please!

 

I recently received a $271 fine for watering my lawn with a sprinkler at 6:30 on a Thursday evening. I rarely water my lawn but had just gotten some new sod and never thought to check the bylaws.  There was no information campaign raising this to the attention of citizens, and they don't issue warnings.

The city has a guy who drives around burning gas trying to nail people for almost $300 for watering their lawns.  The fact that this fine is so much steeper than, say, even speeding in a school zone disgusts me even more. You would think, by this fine, that I had committed an egregious offence.

This needs to be brought to voters' attention. The city and its politicians need to have the public push to change these policies and fines.  At a minimum,  inform citizens of bylaws, as opposed to just posting these long docs on the Web, mostly not even translated. And issue a warning first.  A repeat offender is another thing, but for someone who hasn't watered their lawn in 7 years to get nailed with a fine of this magnitude, with no warning, makes me literally sick to my stomach.

Alex Butler
Aylmer