Northumberland OPP were called to help resolve a heated session between residents and Alnwick/Haldimand Township council over plans for short-term rentals (STRs) on Tuesday evening.
The regular council meeting at the town hall in Grafton ended abruptly after a group of residents began voicing their disapproval over proposed expansion and amendments to a short-term rental bylaw first passed by the former council in May 2022 which focused on new STRs in commercial zones.
The proposed new bylaw would encompass all existing buildings used as STRs.
Among the proposals include a licensing fee of $750 ($500 renewal per calendar year) and a property inspection review. Fines for infractions, such as operating without a licence, noise complaints and trespassing, could reach up to $2,000.
If approved, the new bylaw would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024.
During Tuesday’s discussion of the plan, which was prepared by fire chief Dave Dawson, Coun. Mary Catherine O’Neill suggested the motion to vote on the bylaw be deferred until the end of the cottage season to gather more input and public feedback.
Ainsworth supported the suggestion but asked not to defer the vote for too long given the time and resources already invested.
Video of the council meeting then shows Stover, who said based on the proposed bylaw, they were “close.” That comment prompted a man in the gallery of 50 to 60 people to begin yelling. His comments aren’t clearly heard.
Stover in reaction begins to yell “order” and then states “Sir you will leave, yes you will.”
A man’s voice in the rear of the gallery is heard to which Stover replies “That is enough” multiple times.
“We will bring the information back and have the bylaw in place and let the process take its course and that is how we going to get through this…” Stover said.
That’s when a number of people stood up. Mayor John Logel, who was attending the meeting via Zoom, asked that the meeting be recessed.
Stover is seen declaring the meeting is over and the video feed is cut.
Stover tells Global News Peterborough on Thursday that she and staff went to another upstairs room “for safety” where they called police.
Two OPP officers attended and asked the group to leave the town hall. No arrests were made.
Stover says she was worried about council and staff’s safety as the yelling increased.
Stover notes there were no delegations who spoke during the meeting to express any concerns and a vote would have been held to allow residents to speak.
She says the goal of the changes is to be “fair to everybody” — users and non-users. She said the fees cover paperwork, licensing and costs for bylaw officers to conduct inspections.
“We want to know where they are, are they renting a safe short-term rental?” she explained. “We want to make sure they are in compliance with things like smoke alarms, potable water, septic systems, because you’re in the country in a lot of these places.”