TOWNSHIP OF ESQUIMALT MEMORANDUM
MEETING DATE: May 26, 2025 Report No. CSS-25-003
TO: Council
FROM: Joel Clary, Director of Engineering & Public Works
SUBJECT: Bylaw Enforcement Review
INFORMATION:
The purpose of this memo is to present Council with the attached Bylaw Enforcement Level of Service Review, conducted in 2024 by Innova Strategy Group and to outline subsequent actions taken by staff.
At the October 30, 2023, Council meeting, Council provided the following direction:
That Council direct staff to prepare background materials and facilitate a Council discussion exploring options to enhance evening and weekend bylaw enforcement, particularly focusing on parking issues.
To support this directive and inform Council's discussion, a comprehensive Level of Service Review was initiated. The results of this review are in Attachment 1 and summarized in the presentation in Attachment 2.
The consultant’s main recommendations include:
1. Establish a collections contract for unpaid fines;
2. Modernize bylaw management software to improve service efficiency;
3. Implement after hours enforcement through a contracted-out parking enforcement agency or by hiring auxiliary staff; and
4. Reassess the Residential Parking Only policy and reconsider the introduction of a Permit Parking Program.
Staff support the first three recommendations, which align with Council direction and have been initiated as follows:
1. Collections Contract: A collections contract is now in place to support improved compliance and recovery of outstanding fines. Staff are working with the collections contractor on outstanding fines dating back to 2019.
2. Software Modernization: Council approved $40,000 in the 2025 budget for bylaw management software. Staff are currently evaluating options; implementation will require involvement from the future Director of Strategic Initiatives.
3. After hours Enforcement: Council approved $50,000 in the 2025 budget for after hours bylaw enforcement in 2025. Staff are exploring expanding hours immediately using existing resources, with future consideration for contracted parking enforcement. The initial roll out will be incremental and opportunistic based on staff availability and potential impact. For example, staff will explore targeting after hours bylaw during events and peak periods.
In the third recommendation above, utilizing a contractor to complete parking enforcement is challenging with the current Residential Parking Only system in place. This system requires knowing which vehicles belong to residents on the block through resident complaints and utilizing the Victoria Police Department office staff to run license plates. These staff do not work after hours, making confirmation of which vehicles belong on the block difficult. Further, a contractor would not have access to this information, nor would they have experience identifying vehicles in problem areas or have established relationships with residents who aid in identifying vehicles that don’t reside there. Staff plan to use existing staff, who have this knowledge and relationships with residents, to expand after hours bylaw enforcement. These staff can also complete time limited parking enforcement after hours. Following the change to Permit Parking, which is described further below, a contractor could be explored to enforce Permit Parking after hours. With the additional capacity the future Director of Strategic Initiatives will bring, after hours time limited parking enforcement by a contractor could be explored, even prior to the Permit Parking program being initiated. As the after hours budget is approved for $50,000 annually as a Core budget item, staff will provide Council with performance updates on this initiative, starting in 2026.
No actions have been taken to date on the fourth recommendation regarding changes to the Resident Only Parking program and reconsidering a Permit Parking Program. Switching from Residential Parking Only to Permit Parking is listed in the Integrated Parking Management Strategy and corresponding Action Plan (see staff reports EPW-24-004 from the February 12, 2024, Committee of the Whole meeting and EPW-24-019 from the July 8, 2024 Council meeting). Implementation of these actions requires additional resources. A Project Manager was identified in the Engineering & Public Works Workforce Plan (see staff report ADM-25-10 from the February 3, 2025, Council meeting), but the position was not funded in the 2025 budget. Pending resources, further work on this item remains on hold. Staff will be assessing the capacity and levels of service provided by the Engineering & Public Works department for a future discussion with Council.
Staff recommend proceeding with the first three recommended actions described above and deferring the fourth recommended action pending resources. The following motion is provided for Council’s consideration:
That Council:
a) receive the Bylaw Level of Service Review completed by Innova Strategy Group for information;
b) direct staff to:
i. continue collecting on outstanding fines;
ii. proceed with modernization of bylaw software, pending the Director of Strategic Initiatives;
iii. initiate after hours bylaw enforcement utilizing existing staff, as resources allow;
iv. report back to Council in 2026 on performance of after hours enforcement through operational updates;
v. bring forward budget requests related to the Parking Action Plan as part of annual budget deliberations;
as described in Staff Report CSS-25-003.
REVIEWED BY:
1. Sarah Holloway, Manager of Corporate Services, Reviewed
2. Ian Irvine, Director of Finance, Reviewed
3. Dan Horan, Chief Administrative Officer, Concurrence
LIST OF ATTACHMENTS:
1. Attachment 1 - Bylaw Level of Service Review
2. Attachment 2 - Consultant’s Presentation