Fishing in Whitby

In 2021, the Town of Whitby engaged the community as it explored new rules and regulations for fishing along Whitby’s waterfront.

At Council's direction, Town staff explored fishing regulations for Whitby and considered whether or not to amend the existing Parks By-law to allow fishing in select locations in the Town. Staff sought residents' feedback on where fishing takes place, community concerns associated with fishing, and how to make fishing as safe as possible.

More than 205 people completed the survey. Here’s the highlights of what we heard:

• 94% of participants were supportive of continuing to permit fishing within parks and along the waterfront;
• Top benefits of fishing identified by respondents include affordability, family-friendly, and spending time outdoors;
• The primary concerns related to fishing, included the potential of leaving behind of garbage and safety conflicts with other users; and,
• Several comments noted concerns could be addressed through better education, enforcement, and signage.

Next Steps

The feedback received has informed proposed updates to the Town’s Public Parks and Park Buildings By-law being brought to the Committee of the Whole on April 7, 2025.

Based on the feedback received and a scan of regulations in other municipalities, the Town proposes continuing to permit fishing in municipal parks unless signage is posted to prohibit based on site specific considerations. Staff are recommending that language be added to Whitby’s Parks By-law so that fishing can continue to be enjoyed by residents and visitors, but give the Town discretion to prohibit fishing in specific areas. There are no areas proposed for restricting fishing at this time, but staff will continue to monitor the waterfront to identify and mitigate potential conflicts as they arise.