Yesterday, September 22nd was officially the first day of Fall and, with it, the end of summer.
At the recent Council meeting on September 9th, a delegation brought forward the concern about ‘dogs on the beaches’ of Saugeen Shores during the summer months in particular.
The municipal By-law restricts dogs on beaches between May 1st and October 1st however, this year, there have been ‘dog swimming areas’ within the town where dogs are permitted on-leash unless in the water.
The delegation of, Aidan Tracey, Lynn Carty and Stuart Silcox (Roy Roedger absent), said that “… local residents have been frustrated during the summer but many don’t want to call for police enforcement for fear of any potential “confrontations” with dog owners.”
Tracey said that there seems to a “reactive” approach rather than one that is “proactive”.
They also pointed out that current signs posted are confusing.
At first glance, only the small bottom sign mentions dog restrictions and visitors have to read two signs to try to understand the by-law rules.
The signs appear to create not only challenges for visitors but also for enforcement.
The delegation presented two possible solutions to the signage concerns.
Option 1 – One clear sign
• Welcome message from the Town
• Much easier to read and clear about the by-law rules
• Moves back toward historical restricted summer times
• Historically dogs were prohibited May 1 – Oct 1 – a compromise would be to make the date range shorter June 1 – Aug 30 so that dogs would therefore be allowed on the beach on a leash for nine of the 12 months of the year (75%)
Option 2 – Revised Signage
• One clear sign
• Welcome message from the Town
• Much easier to read and clear about the by-law rules
• Option 2 continues the current “Dog Zone” test that was started in June 2023 – if Council chooses to continue
• Clearly says Dogs Prohibited 9am6pm
• Then says dogs on a leash allowed before 9am and after 6pm
In the end, the delegation said that enforcement of the new dog “test” By-law is proving to be difficult and that By-law officers and police officers appear to be stretched thin to provide assistance.
They added that improved signage would present an opportunity to help with enforcement and that a return to the previous by-law of ‘no dogs’ on the beaches in the summer months (with a shorter June-August window) would also be clearer and easier to enforce.
Councillor Dave Myette said that technically dogs are allowed to be off-leash when in the water as they are not then on the beach. “We have no jurisdiction when dogs are in the water but when they come back to the beach, they must be on-leash. It’s a technicality but one that was discussed when the By-law was introduced last year (2023).”
Councillor Cheryl Grace added that the proposed signage is “helpful” and pointed out that there are two beach areas available to dogs at all times where there are no restrictions. “I believe that people who bring their dogs on to the beach are confused as we have so many different rules applied to so many different places. I don’t think anyone is acting with malicious intent here … I think that your suggestion about more clarity with the signs would be helpful.”
Grace also suggested the possibility of a QR code being included on signage so that people could access more information directly from the town website. “I also understand that people want to take their dogs to the beach where they go but I also understand there are people who are traumatized by dogs. I hope we can very seriously take away these suggestions and would ask staff to come back with clearer signage.”
“I think the problem here,” said Councillor John Divinski, “is that the By-laws are mainly ‘complaint driven’. I order for these things to be addressed you need to have some sort of complaint being issued. The police in this town do their best. From May 24 to the end of July, the police issued 31 infractions related to dogs including being in a prohibited area and off-leash. In 2023, there were five infractions issued so it’s been a 520 percent increase. There have also been 71 policing incidents where an officer has been dedicated to patrol the beach areas. These are proactive and the police are doing their best to address this problem. Beach patrols are part of the Special Constable’s daily duties. So, to make these By-laws work and ‘have teeth’, complaints have to be issued.”
Councillor Bud Halpin said that as far as he is concerned, “… dog owners have to do better. I pick up dog droppings all the time. Why do people put them in plastic bags and then litter the bags as well? Budget time is coming up and, perhaps, it’s time we consider a By-law officer to cover the tourist season.”
After a personal confrontation on the beach with a dog owner, Councillor Rachel Stack said that the stoney ‘dog beaches’ would have presented the elderly dog owner with a challenge to walk on but residents have to be more mindful of the expectation that not everybody are dog people and that it’s premature to ban dogs from all beaches but better clarity would be helpful.
The issues of dogs on the beaches has, in fact, been debated for some 20 years. Mayor Luke Charbonneau said that before this term of Council, dogs were prohibited on the beaches altogether during the summer months. “Then, three years ago, Council introduced a pilot to see if could permit them on sandy beaches. We tried one model in Southampton and one model in Port Elgin. Then, a year later, we implemented the Port Elgin model across the board and it is now the By-law with no plans for Council to re-visit it at this time. As pointed out by Councillor Divinski, By-law enforcement has also been stepped up along the waterfront. We’ve debated and debated and have come up with the best compromise. In the end, we cannot legislate common sense and common decency. Folks on the beaches, with dogs and without dogs, are going to have to get along. There is no By-law we can hire or create that is going to solve how people get along. I am content where the By-law situation is at this time and am not keen to see those numbers increase … I do not think the taxpayer is well-served by us investing thousands of dollars more on the ‘dogs on the beach’ issue.”