A sludgey substance was seen being pumped out of the back of a Toronto bakery, infuriating a neighbour, but the sight was a simple error in judgment by the bakery's landlord.

Bobbette & Belle owner Allyson Bobbit says she thinks the complaint came from one particular neighbour who often has issues with the bakery.

Due to regular wear and tear, the dishwasher at Bobbette and Belle leaked last week, and their dishwasher repair person came and thought it was fixed. Unfortunately, it was discovered the water had buckled the floor of the bathroom next door.

When the flooring was replaced, water was found under the property: there's no concrete underneath that part of the floor, just dirt.

As anything outside of the four walls of the bakery is outside their jurisdiction, the landlord was called, and he decided he'd pump out the water that had leaked.

Bobbitt tells blogTO that when she arrived Tuesday morning and water was being pumped into the laneway, she said, "I don't think this is a good idea," thinking of the neighbour and knowing they'd complain.

People in Leslieville are concerned after a hose dumping a sludge-like substance was seen coming out of the back of a local bakery #Toronto 📹 R. Santos https://t.co/LQuit7Wany pic.twitter.com/G1XTEP0IgI

— blogTO (@blogTO) October 21, 2021

Of course, that's exactly what happened, someone questioning the pumping and what exactly was going on in a Facebook post that had several commenters negatively accusing the bakery. The City was called to come to the bakery, Bobbit suspects by the usual neighbour.

The landlord says there was more water than he thought, and takes full responsibility for the decision he made on his own without the involvement of the bakery. 

The City arrived right away and said the cachement in the laneway is for rainwater, and the pumped water can't drain there. The water wasn't mixed with any other substances though the City said they couldn't be absolutely sure, and within hours a truck was sent to take care of the water and wash the street clean.

The landlord said he did what he thought was best in the moment, and the government signed off on the resolution to the issue. The bakery even checked the records for the dishwasher and grease trap cleaning and everything was in order.

It's a headache on top of the responsibilities that small business owners already have to go through, especially right now, and Bobbitt is mostly emotional over having to deal with what she feels is harassment. She says this one particular person calls the government about her bakery weekly, yelling at staff in the alley but never contacting them directly.

"Every time the government says there's nothing wrong," Bobbitt tells blogTO.

She says the government was even called around Christmas on suspicion she had too many people in her store, and that someone in the area has changed their WiFi network name to something derogatory about Bobbette & Belle.

Bobbitt is hoping to address the situation online in an attempt at resolution.