The new Public Spaces Bylaw was approved by Edmonton City Council on February 25, 2025. It consolidates and updates existing regulations to enable safer, more inclusive public spaces to meet the current needs and dynamics of our community.
This comprehensive review, initiated in 2022 and informed by substantial public input, focuses on enhancing public safety and inclusivity while simplifying the legal framework to eliminate redundant or confusing provisions.
The bylaw takes effect on May 12, 2025.
- Streamlining food truck regulations: To support local businesses and enhance the street food culture, the regulatory process for food trucks has been simplified. This revision reduces red tape and facilitates easier operations for food truck entrepreneurs across the city.
- Event permits: To ensure public safety, protection of City assets and enhanced community engagement, the permit requirements for special events have been expanded to all City-owned property and have been revised to be applicable for events with 100 or more attendees, up from a 50-person threshold. The revised bylaw expressly clarifies that the bylaw will not be applied in a manner to prevent the exercise of fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, such as lawful protests.
- Wildlife protection: To prevent wildlife dependency, poor nutrition and disease spread, the bylaw continues to prohibit the feeding of wildlife in public spaces. A new exemption for feral cats has been introduced, allowing for collaborative input from community partners to establish best practices that effectively manage feral cat populations.
- Bicycles: To promote safe mobility outcomes, regulations have been updated based on the latest research regarding sidewalk cycling. The update continues to permit children under 16 to ride on sidewalks, ensuring younger cyclists can safely enjoy cycling in urban areas.
- ‘Direction to Stop’ and nominal fines: To improve compliance and manage public spaces more effectively, the bylaw introduces a 'Direction to Stop' authority for bylaw enforcement officers, specifically targeting minor infractions. This measure is complemented by nominal fines of $25 for certain offences, which act as a deterrent without imposing harsh penalties, especially for vulnerable populations.
- Regulation of visible drug use: To enable non-criminal regulation of drug use, the bylaw prohibits the visible possession, display, use or consumption of controlled substances in public spaces. Nominal fines have been implemented for select violations to support public health and safety while ensuring compliance through non-criminal enforcement options.
- Updates to transit space regulations: To ensure all spaces, including transit areas, remain safe, accessible and free from disruptive activities, the bylaw reinforces that transit spaces should be used solely for transit purposes, and targets the regulation of specific behaviours that interfere with the physical and psychological safety of others.
Public Spaces Bylaw Development and Community Engagement
The bylaw is the result of extensive community engagement, with feedback from over 6,500 Edmontonians shaping its development. After additional consultations and a Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) review in 2024, the bylaw has been tailored to meet the community’s safety expectations while minimizing impacts on equity-deserving groups.
The City remains dedicated to promoting bylaw compliance by prioritizing education and encouragement over enforcement, whenever possible. Enforcement officers are trained to follow an escalating enforcement model, and are able to make referrals to community partner programs and services in lieu of punitive measures.
The Public Spaces Bylaw is part of a broader strategy which aims to build a safer, more inclusive city by addressing the root causes of complex social challenges, prioritizing proactive solutions and strengthening multi-sectoral collaboration.
Impacted Bylaws
The review of the Public Places Bylaw was initiated in 2022 and informed by public input on the importance of safety and inclusivity.
The revised Public Spaces Bylaw will replace:
- Conduct of Transit Passengers Bylaw (Bylaw 8353)
- Parkland Bylaw (Bylaw 2202)
- Public Places Bylaw (
)
- Provisions from several other bylaws that impact the use of public spaces