Paul Coffey Park in Mississauga’s Malton neighborhood has become the center of growing concern after weekend picnics have repeatedly left the park littered with trash. City councillors and Mayor Carolyn Parrish are voicing their frustrations, describing the situation as a public health issue.
Ward 5 Councillor Natalie Hart raised the issue during last Wednesday’s general committee meeting, noting that the picnic areas were left in a “significant amount of garbage” after the most recent weekend. “This is becoming a recurring issue,” Hart said, emphasizing the mess left behind includes more than just “an abundance of red Solo cups” but also debris much harder to clean up.
Mayor Carolyn Parrish, who represented Ward 5 for nearly a decade before switching seats earlier this year, echoed Hart’s concerns, describing the park’s state as “a mess.” Parrish also highlighted that social media posts have shown large areas of the park with insufficient garbage bins. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” Parrish remarked. “We need to look at this more closely because people are getting away with it, and it’s only getting worse. This is a health issue, attracting animals and possibly rats.”
Both Parrish and Hart urged city staff to address the matter, suggesting that stricter enforcement could be applied, including banning individuals or groups who leave the park in disarray from booking the facilities in the future. “If you don’t leave it in a state of good repair, I don’t see why you should get to come back and use it again,” Hart proposed.
Hart also mentioned “over-parking” as an additional concern, pointing out that emergency vehicles could struggle to access the park if needed.
Jodi Robillos, Mississauga’s community services commissioner, confirmed that city crews clean up garbage from Paul Coffey Park twice daily on weekends. However, she acknowledged the difficulty of attributing the additional cleanup to specific groups when garbage is scattered. “We do charge groups for extra cleanup costs, and if there are multiple incidents, we stop renting to them,” Robillos added.
As city staff continue to assess the situation, both councillors and city officials hope that increased garbage cans, stricter enforcement, and cooperation from picnickers will help keep the park clean for all visitors.