Several business owners in Ottawa’s ByWard Market say aggressive bylaw enforcement is making it increasingly difficult to operate, with frequent parking tickets discouraging suppliers, performers and customers from coming to the area.
Some describe the enforcement as “predatory” and are calling on the city to reconsider its approach and allow for leniency when it comes to essential business operations.
David Mangano, co-owner of The Grand Pizzeria on George Street, has been in the restaurant business in the Byward Market for almost 30 years.
He said produce suppliers are often ticketed while unloading deliveries, making it financially unviable for some to continue providing the service.
“Sometimes the order is as low as $200, and they get a $100 ticket,” he said. “So our smaller suppliers sometimes refuse to deliver to us because it’s really not worth it for them.”
‘The business killer’
Mangano said designated loading zones are limited in the area, so suppliers that are still delivering are often forced to use no-stopping zones.
To help suppliers avoid tickets, Mangano said his staff have resorted to acting as “scouts,” monitoring for bylaw officers while the deliveries take place.
“Bylaw officers are … just ticketing like robots, and that’s the business killer,” he said.
The set fine for parking in a no stopping zone is $130, according to the City of Ottawa.
It’s not just delivery trucks being impacted. Alex Sirois, managing partner at Lowertown Brewery on York Street, said musicians who come to perform at his venue are also getting fined while unloading their gear.
“It’s obviously super frustrating for the musicians who’re coming in to play a gig, and then they end up with a ticket that’s going to take up a portion of their payment for the night,” Sirois said.
He described parking enforcement in the market as unnecessarily aggressive, with tickets being issued within minutes of time limits expiring.
“I find it’s just very predatory,” he said.
Pat Nicastro, owner of La Bottega Nicastro on George Street, said businesses need support from bylaw and the city to stay afloat.
“They’ve got to realize this is an area that’s going through some transition,” he said. “Businesses don’t want to be targeted. They don’t want to look like complainers, but it’s so hard.”
Businesses call for collaborative solution
The Ontario government’s recent $20-million investment to revitalize downtown Ottawa, including transforming William Street into a pedestrian-only space, is aiming to improve the area’s appeal.
Construction is expected to be completed by the fall of 2026, ahead of the 200th anniversary of the ByWard Market in 2027.
Businesses in the ByWard Market are calling for more discretion over bylaw enforcement and more loading zones for deliveries so they can continue operating during and after the project.
Rideau-Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante said she hopes the project will include a parking solution.
“We know there’s going to be pedestrian spaces in the market, which is great, but I do think we need a bit of flexibility to sort of say, from eight until noon, trucks can go in these very specific areas. They won’t get ticketed,” she suggested.
In an email to CBC, Roger Chapman, director of the city’s bylaw and regulatory services department, said unsafe parking can obstruct pathways, narrow roads and make it difficult for emergency vehicles and public transit to navigate.
“Parking Control regularly addresses issues of misuse of parking spaces, especially during peak times when the Market is busiest. During these times, vehicles are often observed parked in unsafe manners,” Chapman added.
Parking control officers can and do exercise discretion when enforcing traffic and parking regulations, and may provide verbal warnings, he said.
In an email to CBC, the ByWard Market District Authority (BMDA), a non-profit organization that works with businesses in the area, said it recognizes parking and bylaw enforcement in the market as a “complex issue.”
For Nicastro, the problem’s pretty clear.
“When [suppliers] don’t want to come to an area because there’s just nowhere to stop, it’s almost impossible for them to deliver and they just stop coming. That’s affecting our business. That’s affecting our customers’ ability to get products,” he said.
The city issued 40,574 parking tickets in the Byward Market in 2024.
