On Your Side: Toledo woman fed up with trash and rats

[Editor’s note: The property was cleaned up two days after this story aired.]

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - A Toledo woman, who wanted to be anonymous, has a simple wish: to use her backyard.

She said she can’t do that because of a nuisance, vacant Champlain Street property.

“You cannot entertain with stench, with flies,” the resident said. “How can you invite people over in your own backyard when you can count eight rats at a time in your backyard.”

At last check the property has a pile of trash in the backyard and bags of garbage in the front. The woman said she’s been trying to get someone to pick up the trash for over a year.

“The garbage in the backyard is horrendous,” the resident said. “The smell last year I ... can’t even describe the smell.”

Now, rats are coming in to her backyard. The woman called 13 Action News because she feels like she exhausted all her options.

“I’m very frustrated, I laugh but it saddens me, it sickens me,” the woman said.

The Lucas County Auditor’s website lists the owner as Matthew Boyer. Boyer told 13 Action news that he became the owner unexpectedly after his dad died in 2020. Adding that a plan is underway for someone to clean up the place, move in and buy it.

A city spokesperson acknowledged that Boyer had started cleaning up the space but, it still isn’t up to code and he could face more fines.

The Toledo-Lucas County Health Department is aware of the rat situation too. A spokesperson said they couldn’t bait the property because of a hole in the foundation wall and broken doors. They only bait if they can confirm a child or a pet won’t get to it.

“If you look around my neighborhood is beautiful, we stick together,” the woman said. “You look at this address-blight.”

This resident wants to see the property owner’s words turned into action.

Meanwhile if you’re experiencing a rat issue, CLICK HERE for tips from the health department.

Latest Local News | First Alert Weather | Crime | National | 13abc Originals