Novel COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

COVID-19 Update from the Building Department - April 9, 2020

Following with Ontario Regulation 82/20, made under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, effective Saturday, April 4, 2020 at 11:59 p.m., construction sites operating under Building Permits issued pursuant to the Building Code Act will be closed or will not commence. Construction projects deemed essential in Sections 27 to 31 of the Provincial Order may commence or continue. Please read the full notice from the North Perth Chief Building Official for more details.

At this time, building permit applications will be accepted electronically by email. Please send the applicable forms and documents to Kaitlyn Werth, Dave Culp or Dave Wilson. For most up to date information, please monitor this website.

If not possible to apply electronically, please schedule a time with Building Department staff to drop off your application and drawings at the Municipal Office (330 Wallace Ave. N., Listowel).

Permit applications

Once the application has been reviewed and is ready to be issued, applicants will be notified of application fees owing via email or phone. Cheques can be dropped off at the Municipal Office drop-box (please put “Building Permit” on the memo line) or be paid online (see below on how to pay online). Once payment is received, the building permit will be issued electronically, or arrangements will be made to be picked up.

Inspections

The Building Department will only be performing mandatory building inspections for non-occupied buildings. Inspections of non-occupied buildings will only be conducted if no persons are present during the inspection. 

Our staff will not be inspecting occupied buildings at this time, we will however accept photos. We will determine, at that time, if work can proceed. Please send all required pictures to any of the Building Department staff listed below for review. All other Building Division services will be conducted online or by telephone. 

• Kaitlyn Werth: kwerth@northperth.ca; 519-292-2049
• Dave Culp: dculp@northperth.ca; 519-292-2061
• Dave Wilson: dwilson@northperth.ca; 519-292-2060

Plans for any new structure, addition or renovation must be approved. A Building Permit is your formal permission to start construction or demolition.

How to Pay your Permit Fee Online

Please note that RBC doesn’t provide this service to their customers.

1. Telephone or Online Banking choosing “North Perth Accounts Receivable”
2. The amount owed is shown as “Balance Due” on the bottom right
3. Use your Customer No. on the top right of the page (11 digits)

Chief Building Official contact:

Ed Podniewicz, Chief Building Official

Municipality of North Perth

epodniewicz@northperth.ca

Phone: 519-292-2058

Staff will continue to take calls regarding By-law Enforcement at 519-292-2050 or email mboyle@northperth.ca. 

By-law concerns can also be reported online through our Report a Problem form.

All North Perth Child Care Services and Programs are closed until March 31, 2020.

All Child Care credits will be processes as soon as possible (March 16th onwards).

All children will return to their program spaces as they were before leaving the program.

If you are interested in signing up for Child Care, please go to https://onehsn.com/Stratford 

Water and wastewater

Water and wastewater services are considered an essential service and are operating as usual. Precautions have been put in place to ensure staff are protected and able to perform their operational duties. Emergency resposnse will be provided 24 hours a day. Operations have been divided amongst staff to ensure social distancing.

Water and wastewater staff will not be entering homes or businesses and will be refraining from interaction with the public whenever possible.

If you have a water or wastewater question/concern, please email Public Works or call 519-292-2067.

For after-hours emergencies related to water or wastewater, please call 519-291-2940.

Garbage and recycling

Curbside garbage and recycling pick-up is provided by Bluewater Recycling Association and will continue as an essential service. We strongly encourage the public to utilize curbside pick-up to dispose of your waste and recycling as much as possible during this time.

Landfill

The Elma Landfill remains open as an essential service. In order to protect the health and safety of our staff, the Municipality has put the following important precautions in place:

1. Limit visits to only necessary trips; utilize curbside garbage and recycling collection as much as possible.
2. Beginning Thursday, April 2nd, landfill customers will be required to set up an account for payment. Debit payment will no longer be accepted at the landfill.
3. Before you visit the landfill, please call 519-292-2067 to set up your account. You will then be invoiced following your visit.
4. Staff will also not assist in unloading any loads.

Please remember that use of the Elma Landfill is for North Perth residents only. All others will be turned away.

The North Perth Fire Department responding to all emergency requests as normal at this time. All other services have been suspended until further notice.

Contacts:

• Fire Chief Edward Smith - email esmith@northperth.ca or call 519-291-6825 ext. 3101
• Assistant Chief Jason Benn - email jbenn@northperth.ca or call 519-291-6825 ext. 3102

Residents wanting to make their payments by cheque are encouraged to use the Municipal Office drop-box that is located beside the main entrance doors to the Municipal Building. Payments can also be done through Online Banking or e-Transfer. Cash and Debit payments are not being accepted at this time.

Visit our the Payment Options pages for Taxes, Water/Sewer, and Accounts Receivable for more information.

The Municipality of North Perth will waive penalty and interest charges on all accounts receivable from March 24, 2020 to July 31, 2020.

The Municipality will continue to provide regular billings and due dates for property taxes, water/wastewater billings, etc. will remain in place. If accounts remain unpaid on the due date, no penalty or interest charge will be applied from March 24^th to August 3^rd.

Established pre-authorized payment plans will continue as per usual. Please contact Municipal staff at 519-291-2950 or fhale@northperth.ca if you would like to withdraw from your pre-authorized payment option during this period.

Please contact the staff below for any questions:

• General Inquiries - email Nicole Noble or call 519-291-2950
• Accounts receivable - email Leanne Marks or call 519-292-2047
• Property taxes - email Emily Erb or call 519-292-2044
• Water/sewer - email Becky Richardson or call 519-292-2046

For inquiries or concerns related to roads, sidewalks and construction, please email Public Works or call 519-292-2067.

You can also use our online Report a Problem form to submit problems with garbage collection, wildlife, potholes, garbage dumping, streetlights, tree concerns, water/sewer issues, etc.

Recreation Facilities:

All Recreation Facilities and Community Centres are currently closed to the public. For facilitiy inquiries, please email Nicole Johnston or call 519-292-2054.

Outdoor Recreation Areas:

All playgrounds, sport fields, ball diamonds, basketball, tennis and pickleball courts, the skateboard park, pavilions and park amenities (i.e., bandshell and amphitheatre), picnic areas, and the Listowel community garden. Municipal staff will be taping off access to these areas.

Greenspaces and trails remain open for walkthrough access. Individuals must maintain the safe physical distance of at least two metres apart from others if accessing these areas. Please note that seasonal maintenance has not yet begun on the North Perth trail system. Barricades have been placed around caution areas.

Recreation Programs:

The April 1st Summer Registration Day has been postponed and tentatively rescheduled for Wednesday, May 6, 2020.

Recreation programs have been cancelled for the time being. Please stay tuned as Program Staff are hoping to provide virtual programming to our citizens.

For program inquiries, please email Kelly Broughton or Nicole Alexander or call 519-292-2055. Please follow the North Perth Facebook and Twitter accounts for program and facility updates.

All North Perth Public Library branches are currently closed to the public. If you have a questions, please email Library Staff or call 519-291-4621. 

North Perth Public Library cardholders can access free downloadable eBooks and Audiobooks from home via the DownLoad Library. Log in through the North Perth Public Library with your Library Cad Number and PIN. Try the App, use an eReader, or go right to the website to read on your computer. Visit the Audio and eBooks page for directions on how to get started.

Staff will be working to enhance virtual and online opportunities for programming. Announcements about these opportunities will be made shortly.