Calgary's effective ban of backyard skateboard ramps overturned by council

Calgarians will soon be able to build skateboard ramps outside their homes without a development permit.

Council voted 10-5 on Monday to amend a bylaw that was created decades ago and effectively amounted to a ban on backyard ramps.

"I'm really, really excited and happy with council's support on this," said Coun. Evan Woolley, who formally asked for a bylaw change one year ago.

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As skateboarding exploded in popularity in the 1980s, Woolley said concerns over noise and undesirable activity led the council of the day to require development permits for ramps — a costly and prohibitive process that few people attempted and even fewer succeeded at.

Since the late 1990s, just nine residential property owners have applied for a permit to build a ramp, according to city records.

Of those, four were approved.

Applying for a development permit requires advertising your desire to build something on your property and giving the public a chance to weigh in on your proposal. City staff will then assess the input and make a decision.

The process usually costs an applicant $400 to $500, according to a city report.

With Monday's decision, skateboard ramps of medium size — up to a maximum of 1.5 metres high by five metres wide by six metres long — will be allowed without a development permit.

But don't start building just yet: The precise wording of the new bylaw still needs to be finalized and approved by council.

Woolley said that should happen in September.

About time or 'unfair intrusion'?

Mayor Naheed Nenshi voted with the majority of council to overturn the ban, saying the city's old bylaw was out of touch with the needs of youth and the realities of skateboarding.

Coun. Jim Stevenson agreed, saying his adult kids, now in their 40s, make more noise with other backyard activities than skateboarders do on ramps.

But Coun. Richard Pootmans, who voted with the minority, said skateboarding on ramps is too noisy to generally allow in residential communities.

"I think it's an unfair intrusion onto the peace and quiet of the neighbourhood," he said. "And we already have great skateboard parks throughout the city."

Skate ramps within daytime noise limits

An adult riding on a skateboard ramp creates sound ranging from 54 to 65 decibels, according to a city report, depending on the type of material used to build the ramp.

Calgary bylaws allow for a maximum continuous noise level in residential neighbourhoods of 65 decibels during the day (defined as 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends) and 50 decibels at night.

As a result, council also voted to change the city's community standards bylaw to prohibit the use of backyard skate ramps at night.

Zev Klymochko, founder of the Calgary Association of Skateboarding Enthusiasts, had been urging council to make it easier for people to build their own ramps.

"People should be able to pursue recreational activities on their own property," he said last October, as the city launched public consultations on the issue.

"There shouldn't be laws restricting it. It's not hurting anyone."