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Enforcement officers respondâ€" ed to 326 lot maintenance and 117 property standards complaints in the area near the universities. They also laid 115 noise violation charges and 40 nuisance charges. Additionally, the number of sidewalk snow removal notices George, who spoke to a group of about 40 property owners durâ€" ing a landlord information session at the Waterloo Memorial Recreâ€" ation Complex last week, said that the number of bylaw responses and charges laid last year was much higher in the areas around the universities than the rest of the city. he poor conditions and I numerous bylaw violations in the neighbourhoods near the universities are giving both landlords and the city‘s enforceâ€" ment department a bad reputaâ€" tion, says Mary George, head of bylaw enforcement for Waterloo. "The whole car shuts down when you stop. There are no emisâ€" sions and no idling," she said. The bylaw enforcement departâ€" ment already runs two hybrids, a Toyota and a Honda, and under a new fleet replacement policy it is investigating investing in more, said fleet manager Mike Goodyear. Driving a hybrid is a different experience and took a while to get used to, Halloran said. But after decades of driving norâ€" mal gasâ€"guzzlers, the first time the The city is following in Halloâ€" ran‘s footsteps, looking to add hybrid vehicles to its fleet. ayor Brenda Halloran is Mcharged up about her new ride. She loves to talk about her new car, and likes driving it even more. But this isn‘t just a case of newâ€" ride pride. While the rest of us are emptying our wallets at the pump, Halloran will be cruising around the city sitting on a slightly fatter wallet â€" all while doing her part to save the environment. The mayor‘s new Saturn Aura is a hybrid, running on both gas and a battery housed in the vehicle‘s trunk. + Halloran has had the car for about a month, and said she is very impressed with it. Most of city‘s bylaw infractions occurring in student ghetto Mayor shows some green leadership with new hybrid By GrEc MacDonaLp Chronicle Staff By Grec MacDonaLp Chronicle Staff onvenient 501b, Bags A TB CY U Oe s MULCHES ntnd But while the onus is on landâ€" lords to keep their buildings up to code, some property owners would like bylaw enforcement to be more proactive and warn about "If you can correct these things sooner, it‘s going to save you money in the long run," George said. She recommended that properâ€" ty owners keep tabs on their tenâ€" ants and neighbourhood so that they know what is happening to their building. That way, violations can be dealt with before a complaint is made, she said. "Landlords around the student area do have a bad reputation," George said. "And bylaw has a bad reputaâ€" tion because of the problems that crop up every year." served was 1,700 cityâ€"wide, and a _ problems before there is a formal large portion of those notices was _ complaint. served in that area, George said. "In terms of a property stanâ€" All these factors are giving the city, the landlords and the tenants a bad name, she added. car shuts down was an unnerving experience. > "The first few times I had a sick feeling when it stopped," said Halâ€" loran, who instinctively feared the car had stalled. Mayor Brenda Halloran is trying to live up to her green ideals by recently purchasing a hybrid vehicle Those fears quickly passed Milovick, who has 50 student tenants, would like to see the city create more bylaw officer positions so they can keep up with the numerous violations. when the mayor made her first trip to the pump. It cost $67 to fill the Aura, and the gas lasted for 551 kilometres. "In terms of a property stanâ€" dards perspective, there should be more staff out," said Mike Milovick, a local real estate agent and student landlord. That‘s a significant savings per kilometre, particularly for inâ€"city driving, Halloran said. â€" Mary George Head of Waterloo‘s bylaw enforcement "Landlords around the student area do _ have a bad reputation. And bylaw has a bad reputation because of the problems that crop up every year." He also suggested that the new Slinger spoke about the ins and outs of the new Ontario Residenâ€" tial Tenancies Act, which was Issues covered included fire safety, protecting from breakâ€"ins and hoarding. But the most useful portion was a talk from Gay Slinger, a lawyer with Waterloo Community Legal Services, said Andrew Teeple, who has about 15 tenants in the city. In addition to George, property owners heard from a variety of repâ€" resentatives from the city, region and local law enforcement agenâ€" cies. Milovick has attended meetings such as last week‘s seminar multiâ€" ple times and thinks that all landâ€" lords in the city should get out and get information. "It‘s good to listen and get a feel for issues affecting the city," he positions be revenueâ€"neutral, where the amount of fines an enforcement officer doles out essentially covers the person‘s And while she‘s certainly saving some money, the main reason that Halloran bought the hybrid was for environmental purposes. Owning a hybrid has made her conscious of the gas she does use. Indicator lights on the dashâ€" GREG MACDONALD PHOTO WATERLOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, June 18, 2008 + 3 "I hear a lot of horror stories and start to worry about my rights," he said. "It‘s good to know what they are." Knowledge is half the battle â€" one of the best ways to curb probâ€" lems in student neighbourhoods is by disseminating information, Slinger said. "I think we have better landâ€" lords and better tenants when they‘re informed," she said. Information sessions help keep property owners in the know about their rights and avoid conâ€" flict, he said. Teeple said that most landlords do willingly break laws, but they might not necessarily know the rules. passed by the province earlier this year. She outlined tenants‘ rights and fielded questions from property owners about specific situations. "The laws are quite convoluted and very fuzzy," Teeple said. "It helps to have people like (Slinger) lay things out." Fleet management is currently looking into a new pickup for a road foreman, and there is a possiâ€" bility that vehicle will be a hybrid, he added. "We‘re looking at $6,000 or $7,000 storage batteries and we don‘t know if they‘ll last the vehiâ€" cle‘s whole lifetime. We also don‘t know about maintenance costs," he said. But that doesn‘t mean that there wouldn‘t be any benefits. _ "Certainly with a 30 per cent rise in (gas) costs, there would be savings in some areas," Goodyear While hybrids might save money in gas, however, there are questions of their longâ€"term costs, Goodyear said. That‘s the reason the city fleet is exercising caution when buying hybrid vehicles. Hybrids are still not widespread, with relatively few being sold across the province, but that might change as crude oil prices rise and gas costs become more prohibitive. "I‘ve become very aware and I‘m always hoping that the ecoâ€" light is on," she said. board tell the driver when the car is using gas and when it‘s using the battery. By being aware of when the car is emitting fumes, Halloran has been able to reduce the gas she