Boulevard upkeep rules
A boulevard is the strip of land between your property line and the street. It may include:
- a landscaped area with or without a sidewalk
- street trees
- a drainage swale/ditch with vegetation
- gravel soakaway areas (for drainage)
- a gravel road shoulder
The boulevard is shared space and property owners are responsible for keeping their boulevard safe and within the guidelines laid out in the Maintenance of Boulevards Bylaw No.12744. Owners must also consider the regulations in Bylaw No.7900, which identifies the infrastructure required in a boulevard such as street trees, sidewalks, and drainage infrastructure (like ditches or gravel soakaway areas to protect property from flooding). Any driveway must meet bylaw requirements, and parking spaces are not permitted where drainage areas, trees, and other necessary infrastructure are required in the boulevard.
The land is owned by us, but property owners are responsible for keeping their street frontage tidy and safe. Unkempt or nonconforming boulevards may be tended by us, with the cost of work applied to the landowner’s property tax bill.
Low growing landscaping can be added to an already vegetated boulevard if it does not interfere with pedestrian access to on-street parking, drainage infrastructure, and subsurface utilities. Residents should be aware that boulevard landscaping may be removed by City or Utility contractors like Fortis to maintain and upgrade roads, sidewalks or utilities.
Landscaping must be maintained by the adjacent property. This means watering plants and keeping them trimmed to avoid blocking roads, bikeways or causing sidewalk tripping hazards. Street trees must also be watered. Lack of watering may create a safety hazard as the tree dies and the adjacent owner may be responsible for replacement tree costs (in addition to fines).
Boulevard landscaping tips to meet City guidelines
- Keep shrubs and grasses trimmed to maintain traffic sightlines
- Maintain car door clearance: no boulders or raised earth adjacent to on-street parking areas
- Clear vegetation at least one metre away from fire hydrants and other utilities.
- No retaining walls
- Mulch with decomposable organics; rock mulch is not permitted next to the roadway if there isn’t a barrier curb (see Bylaw No. 12744 for exceptions)
- Choose plants that are drought-tolerant and compact (generally grow to less than 0.5m tall). Irrigation is generally not required with drought-tolerant plants; however, plants may need extra watering during the hottest weeks of the year.
- Remove invasive and noxious weeds.
- Be safe! Locate property lines and underground utilities before digging. Call Before You Dig - 1-800-474-6886.
- If you will be excavating the boulevard or blocking the sidewalk or traffic, a road usage permit is required
These gravel areas have an important function – they allow water to drain into the ground and prevent flooding. This is why they have been left unpaved. Ditches and soakaway gravel areas cannot be altered without City approval. New gravel must meet City specifications to keep soakaway areas draining well. Poor drainage can mean water pooling or property damage.
They might just look like little rocks but gravels are manufactured in a wide range of sizes and shapes for different uses. The 25mm minus gravel size (also known as Road Crush), specified for roadside soakaway areas, is made by crushing larger rocks. These angular crushed fragments interlock with each other to make a solid, stable surface while still allowing water to seep through. Other gravels that are different sizes or shapes can become dangerous projectiles that damage equipment and injure people when snowblowers or snowplows are used.
Properties fronting streets with gravel shoulders should note that street sweepers and snow plows operate in these areas. No decorative rock or rock mulch can be placed within 0.6m of the roadway edges where this equipment operates. Only approved roadway or soakaway area gravel should be used.
Nonconforming boulevards may face fines and the cost of any work the City completes to address a safety issue will be applied to the landowner’s property tax bill. For example, decorative rock placed too close to the roadway may cause damage to City snowplows and create projectiles that could cause injuries or property damage.
Please contact the City Parks department before planting a street tree, as only our personnel or authorized contractors are allowed to plant, trim or remove trees in boulevards, parks and other City property (Bylaw No. 8042).
