Landscapers may soon need to obtain a licence to do work in Ottawa, as the city looks to hit the brakes on driveway alterations and other work in the right-of-way that does not comply with municipal bylaws. A report for the emergency and protective services committee meeting on Oct. 16 recommends the city implement a new business licence requirement for hardscaping contractors operating in Ottawa. If approved, contractors who install, alter or pave hard landscaping features on private property would be required to obtain an annual licence from the city, at a cost of $381 plus a $60 administration fee. Staff say there have been “ongoing concerns” about landscaping activities such as driveway alterations and connections that do not comply with Ottawa’s bylaws and a lack of knowledge about the city’s landscaping bylaws by contractors and homeowners. Between 2024 and 2025, the city received an average of 250 zoning related (private property) and 125 private approach related (city property) requests for service, and an average of 315 service requests related to damage to or dumping on the roadway. In the first six months of 2025, there were 88 cases where Bylaw Services issued an order due to unauthorized alterations on the city’s right-of-way, with the cost of remediation ranging between $8,500 and $30,000. In August 2025, a Kanata couple was told to rip out their $40,000 landscaping project on the city’s right of way. The city says no hardscaping, including river rock and interlock, is allowed on its right of way because it “interferes with drainage, snow removal and can impact other city services.” Enforcement of the city’s bylaws relating to landscaping is primarily conducted on a complaint basis, according to staff. Staff recommend the city implement a new business licence requirement for hardscaping contractors, “to provide additional regulatory and enforcement tools.” “This licensing regime will provide the City with an additional enforcement tool to address issues of non-compliance with City bylaws such as unauthorized driveway widenings and alterations and non-permitted private approaches that connect into the City’s roadway, which are often expensive to remediate and in addition to the cost of their installation,” staff said. “The driveway regulations exist to preserve the integrity and function of infrastructure including on-street parking spaces, snow storage, and utilities and to preserve the local environment by maintaining trees, reducing storm water run-off and the heat island effect that over-hardscaping produces.” The following conditions would be placed on a licence issuance and renewal: Hardscaping contractors will also be required to provide a written contract to each client prior to commencing any hardscaping work with an outline of the work done and associated costs and details of any applicable warranties and compliance and maintain a proper transaction record that contains the names of clients. According to the city, the new business licence requirement for hardscaping contractors will apply to any person who does work installing, altering, or paving hard landscaping features on private property, such as driveways and parking areas, concrete pads, gravel areas, retaining walls, steps, walkways and pathways and patios that are made of asphalt, concrete, interlock, pavers, flagstone, brick or other similar hard surface materials. People who do sealing and re-sealing activities or the installation or alterations of pools, decks and fences will not need a licence. The city will post a list of licensed hardscaping contractors on its website for consumer awareness. Staff say the city will also create an education guide for both contractors and residents containing information about the process, permit requirements, and regulations for hardscaping and other landscaping work in the city. With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Katie Griffin
