Rats! Cambridge sees sightings spike amid recent redevelopment

Rat sightings are on the rise in Cambridge and city officials suspect therecent the redevelopment at a former junk yard may be to blame.

"There's been a number of rat sightings," Dennis Purcell, the chief building officer for the City of Cambridge said, noting many of the reports of vermin have been along Munch Avenue, which joins Hespeler Roadnorth of Avenue Road.

Purcell said there's been plenty of speculation that the source of the rats is aformer junk yard on Munch Avenue,which has recentlybeen been cleaned up to make way for redevelopment asa residential area.

"There is some suspicion that there may have been some rat nests that have been disturbed because of the redevelopment," he said. "It's not an uncommon thing to happen."

Purcell also notes that the rat sightings have only coincided with the recent redevelopment of the area and says there a number of easy things homeowners can do to rat-proof their properties.

Rat-proofing tips

"Our biggest recommendation is just to ensure that your property is properly maintained," Purcell said, noting that Cambridge city bylawsput the onus on homeowners to keep their properties pest and vermin free.

Other ways homeowners can rat-proof their propertiesinclude:

• Keeping theproperty free from debris and rubbish
• Keeping the lawncut and removing weeds
• Keeping garbage in water-tight, sealed containers

Purcell said if a homeowner follows all of the above recommendations and rats still pose a problem, he recommends calling a private exterminator to eliminate the pests.