Ontario City to Fine Homeowners If Leaves Block Paths

People walk near Hog's Back Park as fall leaves change colours in Ottawa on Oct. 12, 2014. The Canadian Press/Justin Tang

The city of Burlington in Ontario has amended its lot maintenance bylaw to allow for enforcement if leaves from a homeowner’s property block public land.

The city’s bylaw contained provisions for leaves left on private property but did not have any provisions for leaves discarded on public property, according to a City of Burlington staff report. The issue was raised during 2025 budget talks held in the autumn of 2024, said the report, authored by director of bylaw compliance Kerry Davren.

The city currently offers a loose leaf collection program, which allows residents to place leaves “on or near the boulevard” and the city will pick them up on a set schedule.

“There have been historical issues where leaves have been placed in a manner which blocked bike lanes, catch basins, ditches, sidewalks and walkways,” Davren wrote.

She said the proposed bylaw amendment would allow enforcement action against property owners that do not “properly place leaves on public property” in alignment with enforcement on private property.

Davren said the focus for 2025 would be on “warning and education,” but the amendment would also set a fine of $150.

“The proposed bylaw amendment includes wording that allows the City to fine adjacent private property owners should leaves obstruct roads, bike lanes, sidewalks, walkways, catch basins and drainage ditches,” she wrote.

Bylaw compliance staff would also take over from Roads, Parks, and Forestry to enforce the bylaw.

The amendments were approved at the Oct. 14 meeting of the Burlington council, and the bylaw text noted that a homeowner would be held responsible for any leaves left on any sidewalk, walkway, street, bike lake, ditch, or catch basin “abutting their property.”

The city said the presumption that the homeowner is responsible for placing the leaves on the adjacent public area “may be rebutted by evidence to the contrary on a balance of probabilities.”

The changes also adjust the maximum fine from $100,000 to $10,000, saying the amendment would be “applied retroactively to any proceedings in respect of offences that occurred before the amendment came into force.”

The city’s loose leaf collection program states that residents are not to “block sidewalks, bike lanes or crowd traffic lanes” when leaves are being moved to the curb for pickup, according to the city’s website. It also notes that leaves are to be placed at the curb, shoulder, or boulevard no more than two days before collection.

The city said its program was run in conjunction with the Halton Region’s yard waste collection service.