At each others throats no more

Paul Clinton

A nearly three-year grudge match between pet owners and dog park

neighbors has been put to rest at last.

After wrangling through various proposals to relocate the park, the

City Council voted to keep the park at its current two-acre plot at

Talbert Avenue and Edwards Street until the old gun range can be cleaned

up and a permanent park can be created.

On a shoestring 4-3 vote, the council also expanded the park’s hours

during the evening and imposed several new requirements on operators. The

Best Friend Dog Park Foundation will now be required to closely monitor

who uses the site, lock the gate at night and plant more foliage on the

border to mute barking sounds.

The council has now turned an eye toward permanently moving the dog

park to a former gun range in Central Park. The majority of members

agreed that the park should eventually be put at that site, which needs

to be cleaned up, as lead deposits from old shell casings have been found

there.

“We’re just going to have to push ahead and get that site cleaned up

as quickly as we can,” Mayor Debbie Cook said. “We need the dog people to

be more considerate.”

Residents living across the street from the park have complained,

since shortly after the park opened in 1995, that the barking dogs are a

disturbance.

At Monday’s council meeting, members of the four families that

objected to the animal noises repeated their refrain to move the park.

“It should be moved,” said Maxwell Smith, who lives near the park. “We

feel the dogs barking constantly is intruding on our quality of life.”

About two dozen pet owners who use the park also spoke out during the

meeting, saying they enjoyed socializing with other dog owners and

allowing their dogs off their leashes.

Dog owners have maintained that the noise of the cars on Talbert

Avenue far outweighs barking from their pets. A city-funded study lent

credence to their claims, showing that the noise from vehicles was indeed

louder.

But council members have been wary of ignoring the wishes of the

homeowners.

“There is a recognition that the dog park is causing a problem with

the barking,” Councilwoman Connie Boardman said. “It is reasonable to

look for a place to move it.”

During the meeting, Boardman proposed relocating the park to a 16-acre

site across from the Central Library fronting Goldenwest Street.

Yet, the plan died on the vine, when only Council members Peter Green

and Grace Winchell joined Boardman in support of the plan.

In a rare moment of political drama during the meeting, Cook weighed

her choices, then said she wasn’t in favor of the Goldenwest location.

Cook joined council members Ralph Bauer, Shirley Dettloff and Pan

Julien Houchen in extending the time of the park’s operation by adding

two evening hours. The park will now be open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on

weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends.

Park hours, which have been changed twice in the two years, have long

been a flash-point for the often-controversial issue.

The hours were first shortened in January 2001, after eight residents

from Lakepoint Lane across from the dog park complained that the barking

was a bane to their quality of life. Each filed a $1-million claim

against the city in December of 2000.

The city shortened the hours once again in September, after which

Boardman said she received “the most hateful e-mail I have ever received

on any issue.”

Council members said they hoped this decision will put an end to a

battle that has long divided residents and the council.

* PAUL CLINTON is a reporter with Times Community News. He covers City

Hall and education. He may be reached at (714) 965-7173 or by e-mail ato7 [email protected] .