Barbed wire added to fence near Hampton Village without a permit

Many Hampton Village residents were surprised with a chain-link fence with barbed wire was put up directly south of their neighbourhood. 

The property in question is a large parcel of land that is on Tower Avenue and is part of the industrial park. It stretches north to the Hampton Village neighbourhood and runs from Clearspring Middle School all the way to Creekside Drive in the Deerfield Neighbourhood. 

Steinbach City Planner Lacey Gaudet says the owner is well within their rights to build a chain-link fence around the property, however, the barbed wire on top is another story. 

“This property in particular, the owner added a portion of barbed wire to the top of the fence which is not permitted without council approval. The owner has been notified that barbed wire requires council approval and then they will hopefully be coming to council shortly to address that issue.” 

The Clearspring Middle School can be seen on the right.

Gaudet says the owner has not been given an exact timeline to rectify the problem, but the city will follow up if nothing is done. 

“We generally go on the good faith of the property owner but if it hasn't been addressed in the coming months, we’ll reach out to them and let them know that it needs to be either dealt with through the variance process or it has to be removed. If that is the case, then they will be given a timeline as to when that has to happen.” 

If the owner applies for a variance, Gaudet says a public hearing will be scheduled and residents will be invited to share their thoughts and concerns before a decision is made. 

“That involves notices being sent out to everybody within 100 metres of the affected property or about 300 feet give or take. Notices are sent out to affected property owners two weeks before the hearing.”