Mom turns to bright pink sign after repeated bylaw visits about basketball net | CBC News

Rosalind Paciga describes the bright pink banner standing in front of her basketball net as an open letter of sorts. It begins with a big, white heart and the words “Dear neighbour.”

The rest of the nearly six-foot tall sign at the end of her Ottawa driveway reads more like a plea from a parent at her wit’s end.

“The kids of Beech, Lynwood, Oakvale and Fern are BEGGING you to cut us some slack with our basketball nets,” it continues.

It’s a message written to an unknown recipient.

Paciga says for more than a year, someone in the Civic Hospital neighbourhood has been calling the city to report portable basketball nets — first for hoops that were on the road, then to report that they hadn’t been pulled back far enough from the street.

City says nets can’t stay on street

After yet another visit from bylaw officers, she decided to respond, posting her sign over the weekend.

“We are kind of at a begging point where we’re like, please just help us figure out what we can do to find a compromise,” Paciga said.

Her kids are 10 and six, meaning they don’t have the strength to drag the heavy baskets back and forth in order to play, she explained.

Having to haul the hoop out every time someone wants to shoot around also kills the possibility of spontaneous summer fun, Paciga said.

“The city appreciates the benefits that outdoor physical activity contributes to the overall health of residents and understands that basketball nets may be temporarily set up on City streets,” according to a statement from Roger Chapman, director of bylaw and regulatory services.

However, Ottawa’s use and care of roads bylaw bars residents from “encumbering a highway by any means,” which includes leaving unattended basketball nets on the city-owned land next to the street, he added.

Therefore, nets should be stored on a resident’s property when not in use, the statement reads.

The tricky part is, how much of a person’s property is considered part of the city’s right of way differs depending on factors from the width of roads to whether there’s a sidewalk.

In order to determine how far back a basketball net should be when no one is playing, the city suggested visiting it’s geoOttawa tool and searching their address by clicking the “property parcels” layer.

For Paciga’s home on Beech Street, it appears to show the hoop would have to be kept within 10 feet of the garage.

Councillor says neighbours need to talk

The bylaw department said it’s received nine complaints about basketball nets on the five streets that make up the neighbourhood since Jan. 1, 2021.

Over that time, six verbal warnings and two written warnings have been issued, telling people to take them off city property. One complaint was determined to be unfounded.

Kitchissippi Ward Coun. Jeff Leiper said the complaints appear “geographically clustered,” suggesting it’s likely one resident who’s been reporting the nets. The city declined to respond when asked if that was the case, citing privacy laws.

He said while it is technically illegal to store anything on the street, he was glad to learn no fines have been issued and hopes “bylaw continues to take a light touch.”

“The basketball net in the street is a great way for kids to get exercise,” he said. “I think people enjoy watching the kids out playing.”

Leiper applauded Paciga’s approach with the sign, calling it a “wonderful, generous” way to start a dialogue.

“These kinds of issues aren’t going to be solved through bylaw enforcement,” he said. 

“It’s going to come down to neighbours talking to each other.”

A quick walk around the area on Monday revealed 10 hoops, most of which were near the street, while one was stored next to a house and another was resting on its rim in the driveway.

Neighbour calls situation ‘disheartening’

Bridget Remai lives on Fern Avenue, around the corner from the Paciga’s sign, and said the basket in front of her house is used all the time by her kids and neighbours.

“It really is something that the community is sharing,” she said, adding while they’ve never been visited by bylaw she believes there are bigger problems officers should be dealing with.

“There are many major issues facing our little community here and other communities in the city, that could be a way better use of resources.”

Remai described her pocket of Ottawa as tight-knit and considerate, explaining that’s part of the reason why there’s so much confusion about the lack of communication from whoever’s raising the basketball net concerns.

“It’s just really disappointing,” she said. “A bit disheartening.”

Paciga said that’s the point of her sign — to spark conversation and find a solution.

But so far the only people she’s heard from are others who support its message.

“We had our neighbour bring over a bottle of wine last night to say, ‘Keep on fighting the good fight,'” she said.

“It remains a mystery who’s so upset about the basketball nets.”