Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown that the city will be adding over 30 new bylaw officers to strengthen its enforcement resources. This decision follows a third-party review by management consulting firm AtFocus, which identified significant issues in the city’s bylaw department, including a critical staffing shortage and low employee morale.
In response, Brown stated that the council would consider a budget amendment at its next committee meeting to hire 38 new part- and full-time bylaw enforcement officers, marking the largest expansion of Brampton’s bylaw department in the city’s history.
“With these 38 new enforcement positions, those who disrespect their neighborhoods and ignore city bylaws will no longer get away with it,” Brown said at a city hall news conference. He highlighted that public satisfaction surveys last year pinpointed a lack of bylaw enforcement as a major concern for residents. Complaints ranged from illegal street parking to neglected properties and unregulated basement apartments turned into rooming houses.
Alongside Mayor Brown, Wards 3 and 4 Councillor Dennis Keenan, and Wards 1 and 5 Councillor Rowena Santos, announced the hiring of the new officers. The recent review, presented to the council, revealed that the city’s rapid population growth and severe lack of resources have led to enforcement staff often not responding to residents’ complaints made via 311. AtFocus described these problems as “critical” in their report.
Robert Higgs, Brampton’s new director of enforcement and bylaw services since February, informed the council in April that 68 percent of all bylaw complaints pertained to illegal parking, and 50 percent of those complaints went unanswered due to resource constraints. “The enforcement division and the city face complex, multifaceted challenges. There is no quick fix; a multi-pronged approach is necessary to create a significant and sustainable impact,” Higgs said, emphasizing the need to address staff morale.
During the June 3 news conference, Higgs answered questions from reporters about the city’s plans to hire 38 new bylaw officers. Both AtFocus and Higgs recommended increasing enforcement staff as a top priority. Brown reinforced this, noting that new leadership within the legislative services and bylaw departments is committed to ensuring violations do not go unchecked. “I’ve heard the residents’ frustrations clearly,” Brown added.
Councillor Rowena Santos, chair of the city’s legislative services committee, also strongly supported the expansion. She mentioned that the city’s new Residential Rental Licensing (RRL) pilot program, which requires some landlords in five electoral wards to register their units and apply for a special license, underscores the need for more bylaw resources. The two-year RRL program, designed to address Brampton’s illegal apartment and rooming house issues, includes a comprehensive inspection component necessitating additional enforcement personnel.
Councillor Dennis Keenan and Councillor Rod Power have been vocal about supporting the RRL program and the need for increased bylaw enforcement to ensure its success.