Closed butcher shop in North Bay leads to rotting meat, bad odours and a lot of flies
More than a year after it closed, Bavarian Meats on Wallace Road in North Bay is swarmed in flies and a very strong odour blankets the area.
The business has been closed since fall 2021, but nearby residents are getting fed up dealing with the bug and horrible smells.
"It's been quite bad with the smell, and the flies are terrible," said one gentleman who lives directly across from the former meat shop.
"When you open the door, the horse flies come in. The smell, if the winds coming from across the street, it's bad."
One woman visiting her parents on Wallace Road on Wednesday told CTV News it's starting to ruin their family plans.
"We got together on Father's Day, my parents live across from Bavarian, and we went to sit out on their back yard," she said.
"The bugs drove us crazy and we realized the smell, it was that obnoxious we couldn't even sit outside."
North Bay Deputy Mayor Tanya Vrebosch said the situation is unique and there are no easy solutions under municipal regulations.
"It's a very unique civil matter that nobody has jurisdiction to just go into a private business or dwelling without cause," said Vrebosch.
"There's no building code issue, everything that we tried was not working ... It's now to the point where we're saying shame on the owners, go and clean it up."
City bylaw has issued a compliance order under the City of North Bay's clean yards bylaw.
The order, signed June 14, said the outdoor garbage bins have a bad odour and there's a foul odour coming from the building due to rotting meats.
A business owner nearby to the former store said the smell and the flies are starting to affect the way he operates, and he said no one has been in the building in months.
As for the neighbours, they want it cleaned up sooner rather than later.
"The longer it stays, the longer that meat rots in there, the worse it's going to get," one resident said.
CTV News reached out to Bavarian Meat multiple times and did not hear back.
The property is now owned by a company out of Oakville, but it's currently up for sale for just more than $1 million.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING | Trudeau nominates Ontario judge Michelle O'Bonsawin to Supreme Court
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has nominated Ontario judge Michelle O’Bonsawin to the Supreme Court of Canada. In a statement announcing the nomination, Trudeau said that O'Bonsawin is an Abenaki member of the Odanak First Nation and is a fluently bilingual Franco-Ontarian.

BREAKING | Nunavut declares state of emergency over Iqaluit water shortage
Nunavut's acting minister of community and government services says the territory has declared a state of emergency in Iqaluit to ensure the city can begin replenishing its water reservoir without delay.
Back to school: A look at the COVID-19 rules in place across provinces, territories
As students across Canada gear up to enter what will be their fourth academic year in the pandemic, CTVNews.ca takes a look at what measures will be in place in schools, by province and territory.
Canada's interim import ban on handguns takes effect today
As of today, individuals and businesses are no longer able to import restricted handguns into Canada, with limited exceptions. The move announced earlier this month is aimed at expediting a key pillar of the federal effort to cap the number of handguns in the country.
Transport minister set to testify at committee today on airport delays, flight cancellations
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra is set to testify before the House of Commons transport committee this afternoon about ongoing airport delays and flight cancellations.
Honey shortage could extend into next year after devastating winter for beekeepers
This past winter saw record losses for beekeepers, and one expert says the prospects for next year are even worse if they face another frigid winter.
This Afghan student escaped the Taliban regime to study in Montreal
Last year, Arzou Lashkari was ready to fly to Canada and start a new chapter of life at Concordia University. But her dream was crushed when the Taliban took control of her country, forcing her to stay home.
Freedom Convoy-affiliated group being evicted from Ottawa church
The owner of a historic church in Ottawa's Lowertown neighbourhood is evicting a group with ties to the 'Freedom Convoy' occupation planning to purchase the property this fall, in an apparent dispute over unpaid rent for the facility.
Vatican shelves sexual assault probe into Cardinal Marc Ouellet
There is not enough evidence to open a formal church investigation into sexual assault allegations against a prominent Quebec cardinal, Pope Francis declared Thursday. Cardinal Marc Ouellet, an adviser to the Pope, has been accused of sexual misconduct in a class-action lawsuit filed earlier this week in Quebec Superior Court.