Lost in the trailer park

Municipality cautiously considers regulating signage on private property

Who is in charge? There are dozens of privately owned trailer parks operating in Prince Edward County. Many have their own road networks and rules about how these roads are managed and used. On private property, it is the owner’s or manager ’s duty to set and enforce these rules. But what happens when they don’t?

A committee of council heard this week a complaint from a resident of a Hillier trailer park who claimed that road signs within the park were lying on the ground and that emergency services folks had some difficulty locating an address recently.

Hillier Councillor Alec Lunn asked a committee of council last week to look into ways the municipality could ensure private property owners comply with 911 address signage.

As it is now, 911 address signs identify the property but not a specific trailer, cottage or lot. In an emergency, vital time may be lost prowling laneways looking for a specific location. The problem is made worse if lane signage isn’t maintained.

Lunn argued the municipality had a stake in ensuring compliance of signs on private property in order to protect the health and safety of County residents.

But fellow Councillor Jamie Forrester, himself a cottage and camping resort owner on East Lake, said the issue raised is much larger than 911 signs and won’t be solved with just signs.

“Signs won’t do it,” said Forrester. “We need emergency plans that address the fire department, emergency medical services and police. It is a much bigger issue than signs.”

He noted that the municipality was at risk of wandering into a swamp of issues.

“My road is posted at 20 kilometres per hour. I post no parking signs and children playing signs. If we [the municipality] are going to regulate private property it is much more than 911, we are going to have to regulate speed, children playing zones and parking as well.”

Forrester said he and some other operators of campgrounds and cottage resorts have already had some preliminary discussions about these issues, particularly those around facilitating access to seasonal lots. He is proposing a task force be formed comprising cottage and campground resort owners, emergency services officials, and the municipality, to develop a system of common rules and compliance methods.

Many councillors began to see they may tampering with Pandora’s box.

“Perhaps this is a starting point,” said Councillor Bev Campbell.