In the January issue of Leaside Life, we announced the launch of our 2026 eco-friendly community initiative, Don’t Mess With Leaside – Keep Leaside Beautiful & Litter Free. The goal of this program is to raise awareness about the importance of keeping Leaside free of litter and to encourage residents and businesses alike to make a conscious effort to clean up discarded coffee cups, plastic bottles, and other debris when they see it.
To find out how litter-conscious Leasiders really are, I took to Bayview Avenue to test our community’s commitment to being litter free.
Is Bayview litter free?
As part of the Don’t Mess With Leaside (DMWL) community team, I walked along Bayview Avenue from Eglinton to Millwood, watching for visible litter to pick up. Despite the cold February weekend (–10°C) with sidewalks mostly covered in snow, I collected four green bags of litter, mainly coffee cups and plastic water bottles, along with an empty plastic antifreeze container. It was unsettling to think about how much more litter was likely hidden beneath the snow.
I’m confident and hopeful that most Leasiders don’t intentionally litter. However, my walk along Bayview showed that if we are serious about keeping Leaside clean, there is a lot of work to do.
Days 1 & 2: coffee cup pick-up test
Leaside residents often take pride in our clean neighbourhood, but everyday actions don’t always reflect that pride. To explore this gap, I conducted a two-day observation on Bayview Avenue by placing discarded coffee cups on the sidewalk in front of Shoppers Drug Mart.
The February weekends I chose were far from ideal, with temperatures dropping as low as –16°C. I knew the cold might reduce people’s motivation to pick up litter. Even so, the lack of action was more surprising than expected, though one moment at the end offered some hope.
Day 1
On the first day, I placed a single coffee cup on the sidewalk. After 21 people walked past, one couple stopped and picked it up. I thanked them and asked why they chose to do so. The husband, wearing a Leaside hockey jacket, said, “We always make a conscious effort to pick up litter when we see it on our streets or in our neighbourhood.” Very encouraging words.
I then added an empty plastic bottle beside the cup to increase visibility. After 28 more people walked by, no one picked up either item. In total, 49 people passed visible litter, stepping over or around it, and only one couple acted. While weather played a role, the results were nonetheless disappointing. Still, the test provided a useful baseline for future observations.
Day 2
The following weekend, Super Bowl Sunday, I returned to the same location. The weather was sunnier, with less snow on the sidewalk. Hoping for better results, I placed three coffee cups on the ground and later added a fourth.
Once again, people walked past or over the cups. Some stopped to stare, while four people even kicked them as they passed. After 57 people walked by, not one picked up the litter.
Over the two days, more than 100 people passed visible litter, and only one couple acted. Disappointed, I went inside Shoppers Drug Mart to gather my belongings. To my surprise, I noticed a man outside picking up all four coffee cups.
I went out to thank him and introduced myself. His name was David, and he and his wife have lived in Leaside for 55 years. When I asked why he picked up the cups, his answer was simple and powerful: “I like my Leaside clean!”
While the overall results of the test were disappointing, David’s actions and his reason for acting should encourage everyone in Leaside to pick up litter. If one person can care enough to make a conscious effort, then our goal at Don’t Mess With Leaside doesn’t have to rest with just that one person. It can – and should – be shared by residents and visitors alike, working together to keep Leaside clean, beautiful, and litter-free.
This article was guest contributed by Paul Bolté.