The Menlo Park garden refuse site has reportedly reopened after gates were abruptly closed earlier this week, leaving residents and garden service contractors uncertain and frustrated.

While the site is now operational, community members say the sudden closure once again exposed ongoing challenges at the facility, including illegal dumping and persistent odours affecting nearby homes, businesses and a school.

Resident and business owner Danie Dreyer, who lives and works opposite the site on 21st Street, said there was no prior communication to surrounding residents about the closure.

“No one notified us about the closure. I only found out about that on the councillor’s group,” Dreyer said.

The garden refuse site, located near 26th Street in Menlo Park, serves as a key drop-off point for garden waste in the area.

According to Dreyer, problems at the facility are not new.

“That refuse has been a very big problem for a long time. Garden rubble heaps up there in huge heaps, and it smells; especially when it rains, it smells,” he said.

Dreyer explained that whenever the site closes, even temporarily, contractors and private garden refuse companies are left with limited options.

He said this often results in dumping along sidewalks and surrounding streets.

“Every time they close, all the contractors and garden refuge companies start dumping everything on the sidewalks, and it’s real bad. Right around the block, they’re just dumping it around that refuse site,” he said.

He described the situation as a ‘free-for-all’ when access to the site is restricted.

At the time of publication, the site had reopened, and no fresh dumping was visible on surrounding sidewalks.

However, Dreyer cautioned that the pattern has repeated itself before.

“I saw that the refuge site is open. So, if this is a current story, I will not push it too hard. But every time it closes, it’s quite a mess around there,” he said.

He added that the facility frequently appears overwhelmed by the volume of garden waste delivered there.

Ward 82 Councillor Siobhan Muller confirmed that the refuse site has since been opened.

According to feedback shared within community structures, the site experienced a backlog, and equipment was deployed to manage the overflow, with assurances that clearing operations were underway.

Rekord approached the metro for comment, but no reply was received by the time of publication.

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