Dog owners not chipper on park bark

Elise Gee

COSTA MESA -- It’s caused Henry Kaiser to lose his balance and slip off

his feet.

It’s led to $200 in veterinarian bills for Pat Allen.

And it brings Colleen Young’s Great Dane to a skidding stop.

It’s bark. It’s unpopular. And the Costa Mesa City Council is set to

discuss the matter tonight.

The city has plans to renovate the dog park at TeWinkle Park and the

council will discuss various design plans for the site at tonight’s

council meeting.

Really, the only bone of contention for dog lovers who use the park is

the type of ground cover the council will decide on. In this case, it’s

wood chips versus grass. According to a city survey, dog owners prefer

turf over bark 245 to 12.

City staff explored the option of using bark because they said other

cities have used the ground cover with success. Its advantages include

low cost, and it has almost no maintenance issues.

But dog park users say the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages.

They have led an organized effort to tell the city what they think.

“We’ve had issues come up that mobilize everybody but we’ve never had an

issue that mobilized people like this,” said Patt Bell, former president

of the Bark Park volunteer committee. “It is really important.”

In written public comments in August and at a Parks Commission meeting

last month, dog owners listed numerous complaints against what they find

to be the offensive ground cover.

The arguments against bark include:

-dog feces blend in with it.

-it is unsuitable for wheelchair access.

-it causes splinters in dogs’ paws.

-it attracts flies and fleas.

-dogs have difficulty running or won’t run on wood chips.

Although both the Parks Commission and staff are now recommending the use

of grass, Bark Park volunteers said they expect a large turnout.

“It’s still not a done deal,” said Bill Davidson. “That park is a real

focal point to a lot of people.”

The City Council meets at 6:30 p.m. in council chambers at City Hall, 77

Fair Drive.