All of Victoria’s strangest bylaws: Where you’ll be fined for being annoying

Spotted a wasp nest on your property? Or maybe someone graffitied your back wall? If you know about it, you could be fined if you don’t get rid of it quickly enough. They’re just some of Victoria’s most bizarre bylaws.

Victorian councils enforce some very quirky bylaws, from bans on annoying behaviour to limits on dog walking and the speed of bee hive removal. Discover the strangest local laws in your area.

Whether it’s restrictions on public conjuring or fines for parking near someone doing a burnout, council bylaws detail everything locals can and can’t do.

But some bylaws are plain bizarre and they leave one wondering why they were even needed in the first place.

For example, in Wyndham garage sales are all good, but hosting any more than six per calendar year could land you in hot water.

Local laws even detail everything you do and don’t need a permit for.

In Stonnington you’ll need a permit to enter or remain in a municipal place if you are under ten unless you have a parent nearby and in Port Phillip you’ll need one to walk more than seven dogs at once.

Find out more of the strangest council bylaws across the state.

Graffiti clean up mandate

Melbourne’s urban landscape is plastered with graffiti, some as loved or as loathed as Pam the Bird.

And even though Victorians constantly see the tags left on roads, street signs, public transport — and pretty much every other surface — some could be fined for allowing graffiti to remain on their private property.

The towering clock face above Flinders Street Station was tagged with Pam the Bird graffiti last July. Picture: Supplied.

In Bayside and Colac Otway, owners of private land must now allow any graffiti to remain on any building, wall, fence, post or other structure.

Bit stiff if Banksy decides to decorate your Brighton beach box.

Get rid of your annoying friend

It is completely normal for local laws to ban citizens from ruining public peace by outlawing spitting, assault, abuse and obstructing other people, but some councils take it one step further.

In Melbourne and Merri-bek, a person must not in, or within the hearing or sight of a public place, annoy another person.

The annoying ban extends to swimmers at Hindmarsh aquatic centres. Picture: Supplied.

Hindmarsh takes the annoying ban to the next level, barring swimmers at aquatic facilities from annoying or endangering others.

These local laws specify pushing people into the pool, acting in a manner that would damage the pool, and polluting or discolouring the water as some examples of annoying others.

No parking in burnout zones

You won’t catch most Victorians performing burnouts for their gender reveal party, but even watching or parking nearby could land you a fine.

Cardinia residents are barred from participating, encouraging or attending a hoon event without a lawful excuse as well as stopping or parking in proximity to one.

Greater Dandenong and Hume residents also can’t watch larrikins hitting doughnuts in their local parking lot, with their local laws specifying drivers can’t stop within 200m of a vehicle involved in a hoon event.

Fine for furniture placement

Keen home designers beware, you may not use your skillet in public spaces in Melbourne or Merri-bek.

In both areas, a person must not place any furniture in or on a public place.

However in Merri-bek, if you are homeless or in need of secure accommodation you cannot be prosecuted for your public furniture placement.

No indoor fireworks

In Victoria you need to be a licensed pyrotechnician to own and set off fireworks, and even then you will need a permit from the council.

You’ll even need a permit if you want to conduct your fireworks display inside a council building in Latrobe.

Their bylaws declare that a person — including a licensed pyrotechnician — must not without a permit discharge or allow to be discharged fireworks within a council building.

You need a permit to set off fireworks across most of Australia. Picture: Steve Pohlner

For those not to keen on the permit thing, you can conduct firework displays on your land without a permit in the Macedon Ranges if you follow a few rules.

Your display can’t endanger an animal, can’t occur before midday or after 9.30pm or during a fire danger period, it can’t be done during the koala breeding season or more than four times a year.

You can only set off low noise fireworks and can’t cause a nuisance with your firework display.

No free public conjuring

In Nillumbik, residents looking to perform a public conjuring for a reward need to secure a permit first.

The rules are quite clear: you can’t just whip out a musical instrument, sing, recite, or perform any conjuring, juggling, puppetry, mime, dance, or any other entertainment without permission. Drawing messages or pictures on walls or pavements is also off limits.

It’s a bit of a hassle if you’re hoping to showcase your conjuring powers on the streets without jumping through bureaucratic hoops.

The entertainment policing goes one step further in Melton, barring anyone from delivering an address or engaging in any form of entertainment without a permit in local reserves.

No obliterating road signs

Teenagers have been nicking road signs on the way home from a night out for decades, leading to local laws in every council banning defacement, destruction and removal of the signs.

Victorians are not allowed to steal or deface road signs. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

The city of Melbourne is also concerned about the obliteration of pedestrian service signs.

The rules are straightforward: you can’t destroy, remove, paint, obliterate, or deface any pedestrian service sign on the city.

So unless teens fancy a fine, it’s best to leave those signs alone.

Animals

Local laws decide how many pigeons you can own, how many cats is too many cats and where you can own a rooster.

But they also determine how long you have to destroy wasp nest or European bees — across most councils immediate destruction is mandated — and they force dog walker’s to pick up their pup’s poo.

But some council rules get even more specific.

In Stonnington, you must get permission for a land owner for your animal to defecate on their land.

Port Phillip dog walker Ron Buch was fined for walking too many dogs. Picture: Mark Stewart

Nearby in Port Phillip, a person cannot walk or exercise more than seven dogs at once on council land.

They follow through on this local law, with one dog walker taking the $960 fine he received for walking 10 dogs off leash to court.

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