Infrastructure · Bylaw 154-2023

The strip between your property line and the road is part of the road right-of-way, and the owner must grass and maintain it

Bylaw 154-2023, in force since June 6, 2023, makes owners lay out and maintain, at their own cost, the unused part of the road right-of-way alongside their property. The town can take the strip back without compensation, and fines start at $300.

The Ormstown Observer · Bylaws & Regulations Explainer

Key takeaway

The owner of a lot along a public road must lay out and maintain, at their own expense, the unused part of the road right-of-way alongside it (art. 5).
The strip must be grassed, apart from the driveway and a private walkway, and no other construction may go there, above or below ground, unless the town or another body named in article 7 installs or authorizes it (art. 7).
Signs, flags, posts and temporary carports are banned in the strip. A mailbox, civic-number sign, culvert or channelled ditch is allowed on conditions (art. 6).
Planting a tree, shrub or bush there is prohibited, except a native one planted under a town permit. The ban does not apply to plantings that existed when the bylaw took effect (art. 7).
The town can take the strip back, or remove what the owner put in it when the land is needed or the layout is in the way, without compensation (art. 6, art. 7).
Fines start at $300 for an individual and $600 for a company, up to $250,000, and each day an offence continues is a separate offence (art. 9, art. 10).

Why this bylaw exists

The preamble says council considers it necessary and in the public interest to set standards for municipal road allowances (emprises municipales), and to define the criteria needed for the sound and safe management of roads and rights-of-way.

Notice of motion was given at the regular sitting of April 3, 2023, and the draft was tabled and presented on May 1, 2023. Council adopted the bylaw on June 5, 2023, unanimously by the members present. The public notice of adoption and the entry into force are both dated June 6, 2023.

Which strip of land this is about

A road's right-of-way (emprise) is the land, generally between the property lines on either side, on part of which the road is built (art. 2). The bylaw applies across the whole municipality to the unused part of a public road's right-of-way and to any equipment, construction, structure or planting in it (art. 1). Public-utility infrastructure belonging to the town, Québec, Canada, a public transit company or utility companies is excluded (art. 1). Article 1 applies the bylaw to public roads “à moins d'indications contraires” (unless otherwise indicated); articles 7 and 8 also speak of the right-of-way of a public or private road.

The unused part runs from the right-of-way line, which separates private property from the right-of-way, to the edge (bordure) of the roadway, and is not used as a roadway by the town, Québec or Canada (art. 2). The edge can be a curb, a public sidewalk, a driveway entrance or a paved or unpaved shoulder (art. 2). Each owner's share is the part in line with the extension of their side lot lines: on a straight road, a perpendicular line drawn from where the boundary between two neighbouring lots meets the right-of-way, out to the edge; on a curve, a line drawn toward the centre of the curve's circle (art. 2).

"Owner" (propriétaire riverain) includes co-owners, usufructuaries and other holders, and the owner's obligations may also be required of the possessor, the occupant or the tenant (art. 2).

What owners must do

Lay out and maintain the strip at their own cost, subject to the town's rights, which take precedence over anyone else's at all times (art. 5).
Keep it grassed, except for the driveway and a private walkway (art. 7).
Keep it sanitary and free of any nuisance. Maintenance includes replacing a culvert, mowing, and pruning and felling trees or other plants in the strip (art. 8).
Leave room for maintenance and snow clearing. Nothing may be likely to hinder the town's maintenance and snow-clearing operations, or be a traffic nuisance or a safety hazard. No construction may rise above the curb, or the pavement where there is no curb, within 2 metres of it (art. 7).
After town work in the right-of-way, make sure, at their own cost, that their own equipment complies and fits the finished work, and restore the area (art. 8).

The owner is responsible for any damage to people or property resulting from their layout or use of the strip and from failing to meet these obligations (art. 8). Work on both the lot and the strip that needs a permit or certificate can go in a single application (art. 5).

What is banned, and what is allowed with conditions

Only the owner and people they authorize may use the strip (art. 6). A temporary carport or garage, and flags, posters, banners, signs, posts or any other obstruction, are banned in it (art. 6). The owner may not alter infrastructure or equipment installed in the right-of-way by the town, Québec, Canada, a public transit company or a utility, and may not hold the town responsible for its upkeep (art. 5).

A mailbox, a civic-number sign, a culvert (ponceau) and channelling a ditch are allowed as long as these conditions are met (art. 6):

Ask the townA request for authorization is made to the urban planning department.
On a provincial road, ask Québec tooAuthorization is obtained from the Ministère des Transports for work in the right-of-way of provincial roads.
Mailboxes: follow Canada PostA mailbox is installed according to Canada Post guidelines.

What it costs

The bylaw sets no fee. The town's separate fee schedule, Bylaw 39-2026 (in force June 1, 2026), lists this item:

Item (Bylaw 39-2026, line 75)	Fee
Certificate of authorization for a culvert (certificat d'autorisation pour un ponceau)	$25

Neither bylaw says whether that certificate is the authorization article 6 refers to.

When the town steps in

The town can take back part or all of the right-of-way without indemnity or compensation (art. 6). If it removes an owner's layout because the land is needed for public-utility purposes, or because the layout hinders or may hinder, or is a traffic nuisance or a danger to public safety, no compensation is paid (art. 7).
It can require the removal of any tree, shrub or bush, or other corrective work at the owner's cost, when part of the layout does not comply, was installed incorrectly, damages town property or becomes dangerous. If the owner does not act within the time given (dans le délai imparti), the town can do the work at the owner's cost (art. 8). The bylaw does not say who sets that time or how long it is.
A designated officer (fonctionnaire désigné) and deputies named by council resolution apply the bylaw (art. 3). They can inspect, send a written notice ordering a violation corrected, and issue a statement of offence (constat d'infraction) (art. 4).

Penalties

Anyone who breaks any provision, or keeps a violation going, commits an offence (art. 9):

Offender	First offence	Repeat offence
Individual (personne physique)	$300 to $250,000	$600 to $250,000
Company (personne morale)	$600 to $250,000	$1,200 to $250,000

The amount must reflect aggravating factors listed in article 9, such as obstructing the officer, negligence, risk to safety and ignored warnings. Each day an offence continues is a separate offence, with a fine possible for each day (art. 10), and the town can also use any other civil or penal remedy (art. 11).

What this means for residents

The unused strip alongside a lot is part of the road right-of-way, where the town's rights take precedence (art. 5). The owner must lay it out and maintain it at their own cost, and these obligations may also be required of the possessor, occupant or tenant (art. 2, 5). A mailbox, civic-number sign, culvert or channelled ditch requires a request for authorization to the urban planning department, and on a provincial road an authorization from the Ministère des Transports (art. 6).

Sources

This explainer summarizes the bylaw in plain language. The French text is the official version; check it, or ask the municipality, before relying on any detail.

This bylaw explainer is presented as a courtesy of The Ormstown Observer in the interest of promoting a better understanding of the rules and regulations that govern the community. The content presented in Bylaw Explainers is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice, legal opinion, or a substitute for professional legal counsel.