Jun 30, 2009 - 02:38 PM

By Jillian Follert

OSHAWA -- When Brenda Green walks Candy and Bandit in the greenspace behind her condo, the little dogs all but disappear.

The grass and weeds in the empty lot stand more than four feet high in some spots, completely enveloping the grey and white shih tzus.

"You can barely walk through it," said Ms. Green, who has lived in the condo complex at the corner of Wentworth and Oxford streets for the past 12 years. "It's been bad before but this year is really terrible."

Most of the condos come with a postage-stamp sized yard and there is no park nearby, which is why so many residents use the empty lot as a makeshift playground and dog park.

The sky-high grass means children have stopped playing there and most dog owners have settled for taking their four-legged friends for a spin through the condo complex's concrete pathways and parking lot.

Residents say the unsightly mess is also attracting mosquitoes, foxes and rodents and impacting quality of life for people whose yards face the lot.

"We like to sit out here at night. Sometimes we eat supper out here and we don't want to see that," said Randy Barnes, who moved into the condo complex last fall. "It's just terrible, everyone who lives here is upset about it."

Residents aren't sure who owns the property -- they say they've made dozens of calls to City Hall, City councillors and the local MP, with no response.

It's no surprise the neighbourhood had trouble getting answers. This Week logged more than a dozen calls in an attempt to determine who is responsible for the overgrown grass and there is still conflicting information.

Officials with the City of Oshawa confirmed the Municipality owns a three-metre swath of the property -- and were quick to point out it's the part that has been recently mowed.

Bill Slute, the City's manager of parks and facilities, said any City land that is "naturalized" or not active parkland won't be maintained as aggressively as City parks and fields. Naturalized areas are typically scheduled for grass-cutting three times per year, compared with bi-weekly for parks and weekly for sports fields.

City staff said the rest of the land is owned by General Motors Canada -- a fact the company disputes.

"We own other property in that area but we do not own that property," GM spokeswoman Adria MacKenzie said, noting GM lawyers poured over maps and land registry information to confirm that information.

Jerry Conlin, the City's director of municipal law enforcement and licensing, said an order was issued to GM on Monday under the City's lot maintenance bylaw. He said the order was sent to GM based on the City's land ownership records.

"If they fail to comply, we will go in and take care of it with our contractors," he said, noting the cost would be charged back to the property owner.

Mr. Conlin said property owners are typically given 48 hours to comply with an order. Depending on how quickly things move, he said residents can expect to see the grass cut in one to five days.

Councillor Brian Nicholson, who represents south Oshawa, said the Oxford street site isn't the only location that has experienced grass issues this year.

"It's a sign of the downturn in the economy, we're seeing a lot of privately owned land that is just not being maintained," he said. "We're having trouble with City land too, our staff are swamped because of the wet weather."