Haldimand calls on Transport Canada to take action against ‘upsetting and intrusive’ skydiving business
Haldimand County's hands may be tied when it comes to taking action against a local skydiving operation that is at odds with its neighbours. However, it might just have a trick or two up its sleeve.
Haldimand is calling on Transport Canada to take a close look at Skydive Ontario and is pointing to several aspects of its operation that it claims violate federal aviation regulations.
Several county residents have raised issues over the last three years concerning the company, which set up at an existing airport on a farm along Highway 3 outside of Cayuga.
Neighbours have appealed to Transport Canada, MP Diane Finley, MPP Toby Barrett and council for help, as they say they are bombarded daily with noise several times an hour during the business's five-month season.
After attempts to find resolution with owner Jeff King, Mayor Ken Hewitt said the county has been forced into further action announcing council's next steps at a special council meeting on June 30.
It is apparent that the operation of this business is upsetting and intrusive on many levels," Hewitt stated. This has led the county to consider possible avenues to regulate the operation of the business to address the issues raised by residents."
One hurdle to regulating Skydive Ontario's operations is that because the business involves aviation, it falls under exclusive jurisdiction of the federal government, so municipal regulations, such as those relating to land use, nuisance, noise, building permit processes, which intrude on those federal powers, do not apply.
Hewitt said that they've asked county lawyers to determine possible avenues which would allow the County to exert some regulatory control over Skydive's operations. Each of these involve complex and novel legal issues," said Hewitt.
The county's lawyers have filed a complaint with Transport Canada, the federal agency responsible for aviation. The complaint asserts that, while Skydive does have a federal certificate to operate, it appears that it does not have the correct certificate that would allow it to operate in its current location. The complaint also asserts that the correct certificate is one that would require some level of municipal input and approval.
The complaint also deals with the construction of the new hangar by Skydive, and asserts that such construction should have been subject to a prior public consultation process.
Hewitt said the complaint is also raising another complaint of King discharging firearms on the Skydive property.
This is not an aviation issue, and may not fall within the purview of Transport Canada," said Hewitt. It has been raised, however, as a public safety issue by questioning the appropriateness of permitting the discharge of firearms on a property used for aviation purposes."
King said he would have his aviation lawyers figure everything out and declined to comment further, emphasizing his comment from a previous interview with The Sachem in which he said: Haldimand is trying to hurt my business."
Haldimand County is awaiting a response from Transport Canada, but stated that the response may take longer than normal due to the coronavirus pandemic.