Sault Ste. Marie looks into regulating newsies

Newspaper carriers and their colleagues who deliver advertising flyers and other unsolicited printed materials have fallen under the scrutiny of the City of Sault Ste. Marie.

City councillors voted this week to have a report prepared about possible regulation of the business, outlawing sloppy deliveries and directing that all materials be placed in a door, mailbox or other appropriate receptacle.

Earlier this month, White Pines Collegiate and Vocational School presented a historical perspective on the business in the form of Disney’s Newsies, a Tony-award-winning musical based on the New York newsboys’ strike of 1899. 

"I've received multiple calls from residents about this issue," said Ward 1 Coun. Sonny Spina.

"One gentleman was concerned that he is a senior and he has to walk into the ditches of his property to retrieve these items or choose to leave them there. And he doesn't want to choose to leave them there," Spina said.

"I want to be clear that no way am I trying to restrict the delivery of these items. In fact, quite the opposite, I'm trying to encourage the proper delivery of these items and ensure that people actually get them and they're not left in our environment, causing damage to the rest of our environment.

"I think it's something that can easily be done. There's other communities that have enacted this exact bylaw," Spina said.

Any bylaw regulating newsies and other carriers would require approval at a future meeting of city council.