Empowering flowers photo: Dominic Gauthier

Tammey Lau, a struggling mother of 13, has owned her store located at 162 Bernard W. for 17 years. But every summer she places her flowers within a one-foot perimeter of her establishment and the city (who owns the sidewalk) tries to fine her at a high rate, upwards of $6,000.

In her defence, local resident/activist Aleece Germano has started a petition (at www.gopetition.com/online/9797.html) to see if Lau can be exempt from bylaw 01-277 article 353, clauses 4 and 5, under which she has been consistently fined. (Though the borough was contacted for comment regarding Lau's situation, they were not able to respond by press time.)

Lau was able to get her fines reduced due to an administrative error, but she is claiming that she is still being fined unfairly, as other business owners don't seem to be having the same issues. Says Lau, "People who sell ice cream on the street - they put their chairs on the sidewalk but they never get tickets. Across the street the bicycle place puts their bikes outside and they never get tickets. The restaurants - they put their chairs and tables out into the construction when they were redoing the street." Lau feels that her outdoor merchandise is justified in that "the flowers make the neighbourhood look nice," and they are not impeding anything or anyone.

"I think she needs to ask for special permission because the law is very clear," says Richard Mercier, Lau's lawyer. "For the moment it's impossible for her, but she could ask for an exception, you know... because flowers are nice."

 
 

		Write your comment on this article!

Flowers Are Nice     Its time for a cultural training in the city's ivory tower. Some storeowners just don't like being caged in by window and brick be they ice-cream vendors, fripperies or florists. There are people come from countries where selling on the street is commonplace so why not Montreal?! We're getting getting closer to having idiot city officials going around to prod taxpayers for additional money to protect clear sidewalks when sidewalks have be cleared of accumulated scrap people dump and those people get away with nothing. Punish people abusing the system, dumping on public property, leaving bottles tip over on the metro and papers flying about on the access platforms. But a woman trying to make as honest a dollar as her neighbours should be allowed the small space for additional exposure just as a bike shop has near my house, where they lay the corner sidewalk with bikes and nobody complains! The idea of allowing an exception is what will probably turn off city officials who will be thinking of an all or none affair. So be it then, the city should come up with a revamped bylaw allowing taxpaying storeowners the right to show their wares on the sidewalk as long as there is no public obstruction. The term obstruction might be debated but it obviously means as long as there is ample room for pedestrians included disabled people to pass.
Martin Dansky	{48 votes}	October 13th, 2006
News flash!     Welcome to Asinine Bureaucracy 101, folks. Every once in a while there's a little bit of red tape that makes itself known to us that just makes you wonder how ass backwards of a society we've become. This is a clear example where common sense would resolve the whole thing but since we're dealing with a city by-law you can pretty much give up on that coming into play anytime soon. All Tammey Lau is trying to do is place and sell some flowers just outside of her Bernard Street store, not engage in some willful and unwanted criminality like say, drug dealing. She's trying to sell a few flowers--that's it, that's all! And yet Mile End bylaw 01-277 article 353, clauses 4 and 5 are treating her with all the respect and kindness one usually shows a serious criminal. Good to know our tax dollars are hard at work harassing tax paying citizens... ~ I, like you, probably want to sign the petition that would grant Tammey Lau an exemption from this red tape bullshit but the exemption seems so silly and specific that to sign it would be validating a seriously unhinged system that needs a serious kick in the ass. Rephrasing the by-law to "It is forbidden to throw away, toss, or leave on the public domain: ... any merchandise, goods or other items, *with the exception of fresh flowers and live plants sold by florists and convenience stores, which may be placed on the sidewalks so long as their placement does not obstruct pedestrian or other traffic*" is a band-aid measure to appease the morons in city hall that can't see past their own officiousness. I wish her well but with stupidity like this at work that ain't saying much.
Pedro Eggers	{48 votes}	October 12th, 2006
Hi     Oh! Great, these kinds of sites are really helpful for searching good and useful stuff Thanks for this informative site. Barbara vancouver flowers
Barbara Brown		January 18th, 2010
vancouver flowers     Tammey and her flowers are both a priceless addition to the neighborhood. It's a shame that one who gives so much to her community should be punished for it. I signed the petition and encourage everyone to do the same. thanks for this site...sunny vancouver flowers
sunny sengar		January 12th, 2010
Is Everyone Seriously on her Side     If you take out the 13 (!) children from the equation you have what a lot of us consider a nuisance. There are to many depanneurs all over the city who are flouting the rules. Whether it is on Sherbrooke Street in Westmount or Milton ( cramped as it is! )to Outremont it getting ridiculous that these shop owners are allowed to put whatever wherever! I wonder if flowers get a pass what will be next. Does the shop now consider the brick wall and unfair barometer of where their establishment ends? If so then my neighbors have a lot of unused space that I would love to infringe upon! Utterly ridiculous!
Reuven De Souza		April 17th, 2007
Whatever happened to flower power?!     Who cares about her flowers? I see so many vendors set up chairs, tables and flowers outside their business and it really isn't that big of a deal. What stuns me more is the $6000 fine the city expects her to fork out. Seriously, I don't see the point. It's just a bunch of flowers - items which actually light up the city and atmosphere. I really hope this petition goes through and lets this lady continue to bud.
Meghna Patel		October 26th, 2006
Fair is fair !!!     While I emphasize with Lau, I don't agree with her 'Well, others do it even if it's illegal, so I will too", that to me is akin to jumping off a bridge just because someone else did it and somehow lived. The article states that she goes through this whole horse & pony show every year, so why hasn't she learned by now that the sidewalk is not part of her store. By her same argument, I should be able to set up a stall one foot in front of her store - selling flowers, if my argument is "they look pretty". The sidewalk is not an extension of her store - it's public space.
Rob Postuma	{3 votes}	October 22nd, 2006
Sort of compromise     I agree with the fact she should be able to keep her flowers as is. I heard about this on television, and the only point they made that was worthy was the fact the display may get in the way of blind people. That may only be a very small percentage of people, but we have to look out for them too. There may only be one blind person in one particular area, but that beeping sound exists in some places for blind people to know when the street is okay to be crossed. So the right thing to do would be to allow her to keep them, but for both sides, keep the display a respectable size.
Andrew Davidson	{2 votes}	October 20th, 2006
Let the lady feed her family!     Really this just sounds like some pig headed inspector who does not like this lady and is trying to get her to close the store for some other guy to open up shop there. Yes that is what they do, they get city officials in enforce some stupid law so that the person goes out of business and the place gets sold to some one else. Somebody wants her location really bad and worse is that she can't do anything about it except follow there orders. Really if it was up to the city they should be thankful her flowers enhance the streets . They should be happy to have her there. But it looks like its more than that and time will tell.
Maria Cecillia Silva	{8 votes}	October 15th, 2006
There are so many laws and by-laws, how is one to keep up with all of them?     I understand it's a by-law, but is there no room for common sense at all!? If this article of the law absolutely has to be respected so strictly, then it has to be enforced uniformly. Regardless if the object is a bicycle or some flowers, regardless if it's beautiful, or ugly. It is not mentioned if she was warned beforehand of the fine, but that would seem to me the correct approach. There are so many laws and by-laws, how is one to keep up with all of them? Personally, I think the by-law should state: "Don't obstruct the sidewalk, don't leave your garbage outside and use some common sense"
Chanthaphone Soutannouvong	{7 votes}	October 15th, 2006
Let her eat flowers     By all means, let's put Ms. Lau out of business, so she and her 13 children can become dependents on the provincial government's overburdened welfare system! Let's purge this Pandora of her pollen-producing pansies! Let's mash this mistress of marigolds! Did Ms. Lau honestly believe that the city of Montreal would support a hard-working, dedicated tax-payer--one who has established her livelihood over the past 17 years? Didn't this selfish harpy realize that her flowers are stealing valuable sidewalk space from other up-and-comers: drug dealers, muggers, and vandals, to name a few? Let's weed this bad seed from Montreal's garden, before it's too late! After all, why should she be any different from so many small-business owners in this city?
Stephanie Ein	{9 votes}	October 15th, 2006
Sidewalks Belong to City     Shop owners who put their merchandise outside on the sidewalk are a very tempting target for thieves. You no longer have the protection of security barriers. Better advertising and window displays would do more to lure customers to your store. The common practice of putting out loads of garbage on the curb outside the store on certain days detracts from a fun shopping experience. Anyway sidewalks belong to the city which has the right to set up its own regulations. Pedestrians need to have free access on the sidewalk so that they do not stumble and break a leg. The city has enough legal headaches with icy walkways in the wintertime. Store owners should take the initiative to make sure the sidewalk in front of their establishment is always safe. Sidewalk sales and pedestrian malls are possible solutions for whose wanting to sell their wares outdoors. The city of Montreal does love flowers but only in certain places. Just look at its flag!
Stephen Talko	{7 votes}	October 13th, 2006
Common Sense!     Wha a shame! I've seen her flower set-up and it's both tasteful, unobtrusive and, if anything, actually beautifies the grey, dusty drudgery of the streets and sidewalks. Bureaucrats should really take heed and show some goodwill by making either an allowance or retooling their bylaws to allow for some common courtesy, not to mention common sense!
Mark St Pierre	{7 votes}	October 13th, 2006
For crying out loud!!     i live in mille end, just a block away from this dep, and i can honestly say that the flowers that run the length of the block, don't even get in the way of the sidewalk!...they literally hug the building and take so little space up, it's just rediculous to fine her over this... when does making your neighborhood more beautiful become a crime?... she's mentioned the fines on a few occasions when we've stopped in to buy something, and it seems like this year has been particularly hard... i'm sure that the folks at city hall have better things to do and bigger fish to fry, than go after our lovely tammey lau...
Genia Chepurniy	{15 votes}	October 12th, 2006
Warnings     Well if you are taking up city space and the city requires that you ask permission then I guess that is what you have to do, but $6000 Dollars!! For Flowers!!! At most she should receive a waring so that she can get her permit. As she claims herself there are many more establishments that take up more side walk space than she does and they aren't nearly as pleasing to the eye.
Joaquin Bustillo	{4 votes}	October 12th, 2006
What are they smoking up there?     Going after a dep owner for flowers and a little bit of street space? Dude, that's just messed up. I hope she nails city hall by getting the excemption, as stupid as it sounds. Getting permission to sell flowers? What's this world coming to?
Vladimir Joseph	{5 votes}	October 12th, 2006
Support Tammey!     Tammey and her flowers are both a priceless addition to the neighborhood. It's a shame that one who gives so much to her community should be punished for it. I signed the petition and encourage everyone to do the same.
Heather Kelley	{11 votes}	October 12th, 2006
Outrageously good     first of all....6000$!!! wow!!!! there are more inportant «crimes» or «offenses» that are fined less than that or that get away with it. anyway, i dont believe it's right for her to be fined when other people arent. we are suposed to aim for a fair system and i reallt dont see one very often....
Mona Menassa	{3 votes}	October 17th, 2006

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