Advertisement

Kids' worm sales shut down - because they had a sign

Sometimes a city bylaw ends up looking reelingly ridiculous. Such is the case now in the St. Lawrence River city of Cornwall, Ontario.

Seems there’s three young kids – Kristopher, Kristina and Clayton Cadieux – who earn their pocket money selling worms ($2.50 a dozen) on the lawn of their parents’ Cornwall home.

Dad’s a signmaker, and they have a nice red sign advertising their business.

Strictly speaking, that’s illegal. (Commercial venture, residential neighbourhood.) But they’re kids, they’re cute, and the city’s bylaw enforcement officers were apparently happy to look the other way.

Until someone down the street complained.

In a fine case of rooting out dandelions with a destroyer, the worm stand – however adorable – has been shut down.

“The bylaw I'm sure was well intended, but it's gone too far,” city councillor Justin Towndale told the Cornwall Standard-Freeholder.

Scornful responses are ringing in Ontario’s easternmost city.

Hello children! Just another reminder that according to a city bylaw you can't sell worms. In addition, you can't eat worms. Also we are banning the sale of gummy worms from the candy store! And another thing, if your puppy has worms we are going to take him away, too!” radio station Boom 101.9 said in a joke PSA yesterday.

Councillor Towndale is working behind the scenes to try to give the kids their $600-700 per summer business back. He’s managed to broker a legal compromise, but no one’s really happy with it.

“Now we need to bring the customers in our house, which is not really that safe,” the children’s mother Kristine Cadieux told the newspaper.

“And we are not allowed the signs."

Towndale is updating the story on his Facebook page.

“I've spoken to a few of my Council colleagues and we are working on a way to fix the issue permanently so that kids can sell worms and lemonade outside again,” he wrote.

“I hate to say it, but it might take a few weeks to get it all sorted out because of procedural by-laws and rules in place. Believe me, it frustrates me that we can't work faster. It would be great if we could snap our fingers and change the by-law overnight, but unfortunately, we can’t.”

The last word – for now – goes to the mother.

“We just want it where kids are able to have a lemonade stand, sell worms," she said.

“It's kids. They should be allowed to be kids.”