PUSLINCH — A popular Halloween display in an upscale Puslinch neighbourhood will be smaller and quieter this year following complaints from some neighbours.
Shawn Gusz has been putting on Halloween and Christmas displays at his Fox Run home that run for a few hours a day over several days. The event has been very popular in the past, attracting people from all over and raising thousands of dollars for charity.
However, some residents have complained, particularly about the excessive traffic caused by Gusz’s event.
Gusz said a new bylaw prohibiting large displays "was created in response to the repetitive yearly complaints by the same group of neighbours."
Gusz attended the Puslinch council’s Wednesday meeting to state his case.
“My ask is that you weigh the fact that for 21 hours a year during Halloween and probably 21 hours during Christmas the inconvenience in traffic as complained about by those certain neighbours be outweighed by the fact that we generated tens of thousands of dollars in donations to different causes,” Gusz said.
The council came to a compromise. Gusz cannot have a permit for the usual, large event. Although he will be allowed to have a small display as long as it is greatly reduced in size. He will also not be able to advertise it through various social media channels.
“Mr. Gusz, you can have your display. And the onus will be on yourself to grade it to a point where it doesn’t require a permit and that could be the base point for next year. This could be something that evolves year to year, we’ll find a threshold that is satisfactory to both parties,” mayor James Seeley said.
A new bylaw passed in August meant Gusz had to apply for a permit for his display. He was initially turned down, but has reached what he calls an "agreement" with the township to put on a more subdued event that isn't promoted.
Municipal clerk Courtenay Hoytfox, said it would be up to the bylaw officer to confirm if there are any future issues.
“Any complaint that’s received would go through our normal enforcement process, which involves an investigation and a test of the bylaw. So the officer would have to attend the property and confirm that there was a violation of the bylaw,” Hoytfox said.
Although there are some harsh feelings among the neighbours involved in the issue, Gusz said in an email that he is not overly concerned about the potential fines he may face.
“However, the township also said that despite this, if bylaw is called (which they will be, as this entire bylaw was prompted by a handful of hateful irate neighbours) AND bylaw determines there is a traffic issue (such as blocking the road to prevent an emergency vehicle coming by), they will fine me. Looks like roughly $500-$1,000 per day, if I continue with the display, plus an additional $5000 may be possible in certain situations (the conditions of which I don’t fully understand, but either way, not bank breaking amounts of funds),” Gusz wrote in the email.
"These events have had positive impacts in the past related to the money they’ve raised for various causes as well as offering a fun and appropriate family experience.
“We have raised $30K over the years for the Humane Society, Beginnings Family Services and most recently have donated roughly $8K worth of items to the local elementary school, mostly funded from donations from our displays,” Gusz wrote.
“The amount of families that reach out to us via email, social media, and via comments on our past posts telling us how it has become a family tradition for them (and a saviour during COVID lockdown) is endless.”
Jesse Gault is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
