BRIER — Justin Culver says it’s about time this city set aside park space where dog owners can let their pets run leash-free.
Culver and other proponents of a proposed off-leash dog area have been meeting for months to talk about bringing one to Bobcat Park.
“We just want a nice, local dog park that neighbors can enjoy,” he said.
Dog park enthusiasts have packed City Hall hoping the Brier City Council OKs a meadow patch for the off-leash dog area.
Dog park supporters say they collected contact information from more than 40 people during a special “Dog-A-Ween” social event last October at Brier Park.
But several park neighbors are critical of the proposal, fearing it will lead to parking, safety and drainage problems.
“When you get into researching the attributes you have to have, no one recommends you co-locate an off-leash dog park with picnic tables and play fields,” said Bobcat Park neighbor George Neilson.
Earlier this month, the city’s park board recommended the council authorize creation of a temporary off-leash dog park at Bobcat Park, a small neighborhood park with picnic tables and a play area for children located half a block west of Brier Road on 236th Street.
The board also recommended the council review neighbors’ concerns about parking, park maintenance and dog behavior.
Ken Overstreet, who chairs the seven-member park board, said the city’s parks master plan calls for a play meadow at Bobcat Park.
“We designated it as that several years ago because it was too small for soccer,” Overstreet said.
Originally, the much larger Brier Park was designated as the potential off-leash site, “then someone suggested Bobcat Park,” he added.
The latest plan is to put a skate park, rather than an off-leash dog area, at Brier Park.
“We really felt having an off-leash area in Brier Park would be a little too much for one park,” Overstreet said, adding that Bobcat Park is the city’s most neglected.
“Our goal is to move forward on it in some fashion, regardless of whether it’s a dog park or a new play meadow,” he said.
Neilson said he and other critics of the off-leash dog area proposal are concerned because the park board hasn’t done a good enough study that looks closely at some key issues.
In addition to opposing the off-leash area close to a children’s play area, Neilson said he and about 20 other Bobcat Park neighbors want the city to ensure more of a separation between the dog area and homes abutting the park.
“Most responsible developers recommend at least 150 feet of separation from the nearest residences because of noise,” he said.
He’s also concerned, he said, about what he calls the “question of process” involving the parks board and off-leash area enthusiasts.
Neilson argues that the mayor-appointed parks board is “running a bit of a stacked deck” pursuing the dog park issue as if there’s a consensus “when they haven’t really done any sort of a survey.”
The last survey, he said, done in 1998 as part of the city’s Comprehensive Plan, never mentioned an off-leash dog area, Neilson contends.
Culver, the dog park enthusiast, said off-leash supporters have spoken to other cities about their dog parks.
“It doesn’t seem, from the research we’ve done, that neighboring cities have had major complaints about dog park noise, negative interaction with dogs or the people that come to the park,” he said.
After a public hearing on the off-leash area Tuesday, March 20, Overstreet said he was encouraged.
There is consensus that an off-leash dog park is necessary; the question, he said “is whether or not Bobcat Park is the best place.”
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