Mississauga residents told they own derelict space near rail line
Narrow trash-covered trough sandwiched between row houses, lakeshore rail line

cbc.ca
Sept. 15, 2016

A Mississauga man whose basement flooded due to a blocked catch basin in a trash-filled laneway behind his home was shocked Thursday to discover he owns the derelict space, along with some of his neighbours.

Marcio Bomfim, who lives on Kos Boulevard, a small Mississauga street that backs onto the lakeshore rail corridor, contacted CBC News earlier this week after his basement carpet and baseboards were destroyed by a major leak.

At the time, Bomfim was struggling to find out who was responsible for the narrow trough of land behind his home where a storm drain had been blocked by a mix of garbage, dirt and mulch. Bomfim believed either the city, CN Rail or Metrolinx should have been maintaining the space.

After CBC News inquired, city officials said the land belongs to Metrolinx - the provincial transit agency that runs GO Trains along the rail line. The city also said it would unblock the drain.

Metrolinx said it would work with Bomfim on the issue. Mississauga city councillor Karen Ras said she's going to try to arrange a meeting between the two sides.

For now, however, it's unclear what will happen.

On Thursday, Ras found documentation that shows Bomfim and his Kos Boulevard neighbours own the small space.

Bomfim, who moved into his home three years ago, said he was never told that the land belonged to him and the other residents. He said he's never seen anyone attempt to clean it up.

"Nobody ever mentioned anything about it. It's a big surprise, for me and I think most of the home owners," he told CBC News.

Cleanup could be difficult

Bomfim and his neighbours say they're concerned about how they'll go about cleaning up the space. It's hard to even gain access to the narrow piece of land, and it's unclear if large equipment will be able to get into the space should the residents need to do something with large trees.

Tammy Turgeon, one of Bomfim's neighbours, said one problematic tree damaged her home when its roots broke some of her pipes. Later, she said the tree damaged her roof.

Several trees, however, are on the Metrolinx property.

Ras said she understands the residents' frustration with the situation but said it's a "unique" issue that started when the homes were built in 1977. Today, there's no way they'd be allowed that close to the rail line, the councillor said.