City of Ottawa Bylaws ‘Harmonization’
Based on
December 7,
2004 proposed License Categories and Fees
Rurals - Basis of
Response
1)
Agricultural Producers
selling their own products – exempt in all categories, except for
public health and safety issues (eg. On their own property, private
property & public property)
2)
Producer Based Farmers’ Markets
and their vendors – exempt except for public health and safety
issues
3)
Agricultural Exhibitions and Festivals
and their vendors (all proceeds going to agricultural and/or
charitable organizations) – exempt except for public health and
safety issues
4)
Rural Exhibitions
( participating vendors are
exempt of fees) – Fees set at 10% of Urban Fees and Canada
Day is treated the same as other days
5)
Rural Sellers, Refreshment Vehicles and Refreshment Sellers
– Fees set at 10% of Urban Fees and Canada Day is treated the same
as other days
6)
Suburban Exhibitions
( participating vendors are
exempt of fees) – Fees set at 50% of Urban Fees and Canada
Day is treated the same as other days
7)
Suburban Sellers, Refreshment Vehicles and Refreshment
Sellers – rates set
at 50% of Urban Fees and Canada Day is treated the same as other
days
City of
Ottawa Bylaws ‘Harmonization’
Some
Arguments based on Facts:
A.
Old Ottawa has systematically destroyed the incentive for
agricultural producers to sell their own products by allowing
resellers (“hucksters”) unrestricted access to the downtown,
existing farmers’ markets controlled by the City. This has reduced
the agricultural/horticultural producer numbers from hundreds to
tens, despite a huge growth in population. Incentives must be
provided to encourage new producers before they are all gone!
B.
City of Ottawa consumer research shows that urban consumers
overwhelmingly prefer to buy Ottawa area produce from the producer.
Steps must be taken to encourage this to happen.
C.
About 90% of Ottawa’s population is in the urban area, 10% in
the rural area. Urban sellers have a ready customer base at hand.
D.
About 90% of the area of Ottawa is rural, meaning commerce in
rural areas requires at least 900% more traveling by vendors and/or
customers.
E.
Amenities like public transit are not provided by the City of
Ottawa in rural areas (and should not be). The result is that
consumers without cars have access only to core markets served by
urban transit. Currently these markets are stocked by resellers or
retailers with produce largely coming from thousands of miles away.
To reach these consumers, local agricultural producers must be
encouraged to sell in urban areas.
F.
Buying local produce has a multiplier effect of 7, meaning
that each $1 spent by consumers on local agricultural produce
generates about $7 in related commerce in the area. This keeps our
money working in the local economy, not elsewhere.
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