Barnacles have appeared on vehicles in Saskatchewan’s capital, but they’re not sticky little water-dwelling crustaceans.
The bright yellow devices, used to make sure parking scofflaws pay their tickets, could soon be making their way to other parts of the country.
“You will see more and more Barnacles,” Colin Heffron, chairman of Barnacle Parking, said in an interview from New Jersey.
When a Barnacle is placed on a vehicle’s windshield, commercial-grade suction cups latch onto the glass with more than 450 kilograms of force. It can only be removed once the driver uses a QR code on the device to pay outstanding fines.
A private company in Ontario has signed on to use Barnacles, and the University of Regina has begun deploying the device for people who persistently fail to pay fines.
“It is important to note that the Barnacle is only used as a last resort,” Paul Dederick, a university spokesperson, said in an emailed statement.
Dederick said the Barnacle is used after an extensive process. Anyone who has accumulated $199 or more in unpaid parking fines is assigned a persistent violator status and their vehicle gets a notice if it’s on campus.
If the fines are still not paid and the vehicle is spotted on campus, it’s time for the Barnacle.
Dederick said it’s “a less invasive enforcement tool than traditional towing and offers a less arduous experience for violators than using a parking boot or wheel clamp.”
The university has used the Barnacle four times since January, and it’s been the subject of much social media attention.
Heffron said the device — with a catchy name, bright colour and prominent display on windshields — often goes viral online when deployed in a new market.
SpongeBob Square Pants comparisons abounded when the New York Police Department began a pilot project with the devices earlier this month. The force said on social media that Barnacles allow officers to reduce parking congestion and address vehicles that are a nuisance and a hazard.
Heffron said Barnacles have been deployed at universities, in municipalities and by other police forces across the United States from Florida to Michigan and even in Hawaii.
People have posted online different ways to try and unstick the Barnacle, from running defrost to using a credit card to pull up the suction cups.
Unfortunately for those who need to pay a fine, the only way to truly remove the device is to take out the windshield, said Heffron. If someone tampers with the device, it triggers an “ear-piercing” alarm.
The goal of the Barnacle is to deter people from parking illegally without the extra hassles that come with a tow or a parking boot. It also promotes compliance, Heffron said.
“If you drive into a parking lot and happen to see a few of these on a windshield, you aren’t parking illegally there,” he said. “You are going to move…you are going to pay for your parking.”
While the company is just delving into the Canadian market, Heffron said it has been tested to make sure it can withstand the frigid northern climate.
The company hired a freezer truck and parked it outside its office in New Jersey, testing the Barnacles inside. The devices have been used in Alaska.
“We are 100 per cent prepared to service Canada,” Heffron said.
PORT ALBERNI, B.C. – RCMP say the body of a second person has been found inside their vehicle after a road washed away amid pouring rain on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
Police say two vehicles went into the Sarita River when Bamfield Road washed out on Saturday as an atmospheric river hammered southern B.C.
The body of the other driver was found Sunday.
More coming.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
The B.C. Greens say Sonia Furstenau will be staying on as party leader, despite losing her seat in the legislature in Saturday’s provincial election.
The party says in a statement that its two newly elected MLAs, Jeremy Valeriote and Rob Botterell, support Furstenau’s leadership as they “navigate the prospect of having the balance of power in the legislature.”
Neither the NDP led by Premier David Eby nor the B.C. Conservatives led by John Rustad secured a majority in the election, with two recounts set to take place from Oct. 26 to 28.
Eby says in a news conference that while the election outcome is uncertain, it’s “very likely” that the NDP would need the support of others to pass legislation.
He says he reached out to Furstenau on election night to congratulate her on the Greens’ showing.
But he says the Green party has told the NDP they are “not ready yet” for a conversation about a minority government deal.
The Conservatives went from taking less than two per cent of the vote in 2020 to being elected or leading in 45 ridings, two short of a majority and only one behind the NDP.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio is making a difference, 4,175 kilometres away from home.
The 32-year-old Canadian international midfielder, whose parents hail from Colombia, has been working with the Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization, a charity whose goal is to help disadvantaged youth in the South American country.
Osorio has worked behind the scenes, with no fanfare.
Until now, with his benevolence resulting in becoming Toronto FC’s nominee for the Audi Goals Drive Progress Impact Award, which honours an MLS player “who showed outstanding dedication to charitable efforts and serving the community” during the 2024 season.”
Other nominees include Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Sebastian Berhalter and CF Montreal goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois.
The winner will be announced in late November.
The Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization (CCCO) is run entirely by volunteers like Monica Figueredo and Claudia Soler. Founded in 1991, it received charitable status in 2005.
The charity currently has four projects on the go: two in Medellin and one each in Armenia and Barranquilla.
They include a school, a home for young girls whose parents are addicted to drugs, after-school and weekend programs for children in a disadvantaged neighbourhood, and nutrition and education help for underprivileged youth.
The organization heard about Osorio and was put in contact with him via an intermediary, which led to a lunch meeting. Osorio did his due diligence and soon got back to the charity with his decision.
“It was something that I wanted to be a part of right away,” said Osorio, whose lone regret is that he didn’t get involved sooner.
“I’m fortunate now that to help more now that I could have back then,” he added. “The timing actually worked out for everybody. For the last three years I have donated to their cause and we’ve built a couple of (football) fields in different cities over there in the schools.”
His father visited one of the sites in Armenia close to his hometown.
“He said it was amazing, the kids, how grateful they are to be able to play on any pitch, really,” said Osorio. “But to be playing on a new pitch, they’re just so grateful and so humble.
“It really makes it worth it being part of this organization.”
The collaboration has also made Osorio take stock.
“We’re very fortunate here in Canada, I think, for the most part. Kids get to go to school and have a roof over their head and things like that. In Colombia, it’s not really the same case. My father and his family grew up in tough conditions, so giving back is like giving back to my father.”
Osorio’s help has been a godsend to the charity.
“We were so surprised with how willing he was,” said Soler.
The TFC skipper has helped pay for a football field in Armenia as well as an ambitious sports complex under construction in Barranquilla.
“It’s been great for them,” Figueredo said of the pitch in Armenia. “Because when they go to school, now they have a proper place to train.”
Osorio has also sent videos encouraging the kids to stay active — as well as shipping soccer balls and signed jerseys their way.
“They know more about Jonathan than the other players in Colombia,” Figueredo said. “That’s the funny part. Even though he’s far away, they’ve connected with him.”
“They feel that they have a future, that they can do more,” she added. “Seeing that was really, really great.”
The kids also followed Osorio through the 2022 World Cup and this summer’s Copa America.
Back home, Osorio has also attended the charity’s annual golf tournament, helping raise funds.
A Toronto native, he has long donated four tickets for every TFC home game to the Hospital for Sick Children.
Vancouver’s Berhalter was nominated for his involvement in the Whitecaps’ partnership with B.C. Children’s Hospital while Montreal’s Sirois was chosen for his work with the Montreal Impact Foundation.
—
Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
Sentencing hearing continues for University of Waterloo gender studies class stabber
Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio making a difference off the pitch as well as on it
Inequality has broad impacts on the health of Montreal children, report finds
Liberal majority victory shifts political landscape in New Brunswick
Thomson Reuters acquires AI accounting assistant developer Materia
Building Homes Faster with our Latest 3D Construction Printer
Legault ‘shocked’ by Montreal teacher scandal, pledges to toughen secularism measures
Susan Holt Breaks the Glass Ceiling in New Brunswick Politics
