Canandaigua officials held off on advancing an e-bike ordinance Monday after questioning whether proposed fines and impoundment charges would place too heavy a burden on families and people who depend on the vehicles for transportation.
During back-to-back Environmental and Ordinance Committee meetings Oct. 5, officials also declined to pursue stricter erosion-control requirements and heard warnings about unresolved garbage, recycling and sewage sludge disposal options ahead of Ontario County’s landfill closure in 2028.
The meetings at the Hurley Building included a Canandaigua Lake monitoring update and discussion of how to balance public safety and environmental protection with costs to residents and the city. No e-bike ordinance or new stormwater requirements were adopted.
E-bike penalties draw concerns
The proposed ordinance would give police authority to impound certain motorized vehicles operated in violation of city rules, including electric scooters and throttle-powered e-bikes. The draft excludes bicycles with only electric pedal assistance and mobility devices used by people with disabilities.
As presented, it would prohibit covered battery-powered vehicles on sidewalks, in city parks, pathways, playgrounds and cemeteries, and on public highways posted above 30 mph. It would also prohibit riders younger than 16 from operating them on public highways or city property, cap operating speeds at 20 mph and address reckless and impaired operation.
The proposed maximum fines are $500 for a first offense, $750 for a second and $1,000 for subsequent offenses. The draft also allows up to 15 days in jail.
Separate charges to reclaim an impounded vehicle would begin at $250, increase to $500 for a second offense and reach $750 for subsequent offenses, plus applicable towing costs and $10 daily storage fees.
Committee member J.T. Squires questioned the jail provision, fine amounts and accumulating storage charges, particularly for households living paycheck to paycheck. Squires requested removing the jail language and discussed eliminating storage fees or delaying when they begin.
Police Chief Nielsen said officers have repeatedly encountered the same unsafe riders despite efforts to educate them. Stronger consequences would help discourage repeat violations, he said, without requiring additional police staffing.
Other council members questioned the combined financial impact of a court fine and a mandatory redemption charge.
Mayor Jared Simpson raised another concern: prohibiting riding on both sidewalks and roads posted above 30 mph could limit access along Eastern Boulevard to destinations such as Wegmans and the post office.
Nielsen said sidewalk riding creates hazards when fast-moving bikes enter intersections before drivers can react.
Committee Chair Erich Dittmar said the proposed restriction on roads posted above 30 mph would be removed from the working draft. Questions about fines, redemption charges and whether storage fees should be eliminated or delayed will return for further committee discussion.
Committee declines erosion-control changes
The Ordinance Committee ended its stormwater discussion without directing staff to draft new legislation.
Officials had considered lowering the land-disturbance threshold requiring a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan from one acre to 5,000 square feet, slightly more than one-tenth of an acre.
Public Works Director Sarah Brown recommended retaining the existing threshold. Her written memo cited costs to property owners, additional inspection and enforcement responsibilities, and insufficient staffing to consistently administer the expanded requirements.
Brown identified a simpler erosion-control plan or sketch as a possible alternative if council wanted additional oversight, but her recommendation remained to make no change.
Doug Merrill urged particular attention to properties near Sucker Brook, citing the city’s investment in flood mitigation and efforts to prevent sediment and debris from reaching the lake. Simpson said residents had also raised erosion concerns elsewhere in the city.
Public works staff cautioned that runoff from distant properties can reach Sucker Brook through storm drains and said citywide rules would be easier to enforce consistently.
Discussion ultimately turned to whether officials had enough evidence of a broader problem to justify additional regulation. City Manager John Goodwin said the city had not identified specific property-owner actions that caused the 2023 flooding.
Dittmar concluded that the committee would not move forward with new requirements.
Landfill closure leaves disposal questions
Ontario County Sustainability and Solid Waste Director Carla Jordan said the county is still evaluating its role in waste disposal after the landfill closes Dec. 31, 2028.
Seven responses to a county request for solutions included traditional disposal services, mixed-waste processing, organics collection and further planning. Follow-up discussions raised questions about property needs, financing, procurement and requirements directing waste to a particular facility.
Jordan also warned that the recycling facility at the landfill site would close at the end of the current contract unless the county takes further action.
County residents currently benefit from a zero-dollar-per-ton recycling tipping fee. Jordan said the current outside market rate is approximately $100 per ton, illustrating the potential change in disposal economics rather than a settled future charge.
A county waste study found that nearly 20% of discarded material was recyclable and almost 35% was compostable.
Most options examined for a regional sewage sludge treatment facility were not financially viable, Jordan said. The one viable scenario required about 100,000 wet tons annually, far above the roughly 5,500 tons generated by interested communities.
Jordan encouraged discussion of city food-waste collection and said county assistance and state grants could potentially support a pilot or broader program. No program was approved.
Lake monitoring expands
Emily DeBolt, executive director of the Canandaigua Lake Watershed Association, described work by more than 70 volunteer citizen scientists monitoring water clarity, temperature, harmful algal blooms and tributaries.
New monitoring at Deep Run and Gage Gully aims to improve understanding of how storm runoff carries phosphorus into the lake. A weather station at Canandaigua Boatworks will help connect rainfall and wind conditions with stream and bloom observations.
DeBolt cautioned that bloom maps document reported conditions but cannot establish whether a location is safe at any particular moment because blooms move and change.
She also highlighted the association’s new Wake Smart education campaign, developed with local marinas to encourage wake boat operation farther from shore and in deeper water to reduce shoreline and sediment disturbance.
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