As a resident living near Bob Acton Park in Upper Beaches, Toronto, I am deeply concerned about the proposal to establish community gardens within the park. This petition aims to prevent the development of community gardens in Bob Acton Park due to potential issues with pests, specifically rats, and their negative impact on our community.

Bob Acton Park is easily one of the best parts of the entire neighbourhood and every day we enjoy watching the extent to which the community uses it and the variety of activities that happen here.  Many of those in the neighbourhood do not have yards, so this park is truly an extension of people's homes and really brings the community together.  I recently learned of the proposal to include community gardens in the Bob Acton Park Master Plan and while I initially thought it sounded like a nice idea (subject to it being in a less utilized part of the park to continue to accommodate other activities), I had concerns about it becoming a food source that would attract rats and other pests. 

Further research and discussions with the City of Toronto have confirmed that it is a real concern that has caused major problems in Toronto, along with Vancouver, Chicago, Phoenix, and other densely populated areas.  The City tries to mitigate concerns by saying if the garden has good volunteers, it will minimize the risk, but admits that it only takes one person with a plot to not follow the rules around composting or garbage disposal to create a problem.  Additionally, the City admitted that there were problems with major rat infestations in community gardens during COVID and during City strikes when garbage pickup or maintenance is delayed and at least one community garden had to be removed completely.  

The potential for community gardens to attract rats can be found with a quick Google search, but I have provided some websites below.  

https://vancouversun.com/news/staff-blogs/commercial-drive-area-community-garden-playground-crawling-with-rats

https://torontourbangrowers.org/controlling-rodents

https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/west-loop-community-garden-closed-rats-weeds/

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/special/urban/rat-control-in-city-gardens

http://chicagocommunitygardens.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/CCGA-Guide-Rats-In-Community-Gardens-2021-1.pdf

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/rat-problem-grows-at-east-vancouver-community-garden-1.2767232

https://justfood.ca/community-gardening-network/pest-control-strategies/

https://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/article/489839

https://www.facebook.com/groups/freindsofmosspark/posts/3034030406926537/

The presence of rats poses serious health risks as they are known carriers of diseases. Moreover, they can cause property damage by gnawing on structures or burrowing into homes nearby.  Examples in Vancouver also show how a rat infestation caused by a community garden can make the rest of the park unusable or unsafe.  No one wants a rat lurking around the sandbox or approaching us if we're eating in the park.  Lastly, occasionally there have been coyote sightings in the park and given they eat rats and other pests, this could incentivize them to come out more frequently, causing safety issues for children and dogs.

In closing, while the idea of a community garden sounds nice, the reality is that we live in a city with an unmitigated and growing rat problem and an area that is expected to see a lot of new development and therefore construction over the next 10 years, which inevitably stirs up the rat population.  Let's do everything we can to keep them out of our park and our neighbourhood by not creating a friendly environment for them in a community garden.  Waiting until it becomes a problem will mean it’s too late as they are notoriously hard to get rid of given their ability to breed year round and multiple exponentially.

Further websites below on rat problems caused by nearby construction as well as coyotes and vegetable gardens:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/east-york-rats-infestation-1.5112527

https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/here-s-why-orleans-residents-say-there-is-a-rat-problem-1.6450916

https://www.ontario.ca/page/preventing-and-managing-conflicts-coyotes

https://www.skedaddlewildlife.com/location/oakville/blog/coyotes-in-oakville/

https://georginaisland.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Tips-on-Living-with-Coyotes.pdf

By signing this petition against locating community gardens in Bob Acton Park, we aim to ensure that community members, including our children and pets can continue to use and enjoy this valued green space for years to come without fear or inconvenience caused by rats and other pests attracted by community gardens.

Sign now if you agree that preserving the safety and continued enjoyment of Bob Acton Park should be our top priority!

Thank you for your support in keeping our community vibrant and rat-free.

Note: Please also contact Councillor Brad Bradford (councillor_bradford@toronto.ca) and the Senior Project Coordinator (Sam.Bietenholz@toronto.ca) to let them know you share these concerns.