Dog park should stay put, panel suggests

Paul Clinton

A city advisory panel has shunned a bid to relocate the city’s dog

park to any of the three proposed sites.

The Community Services Commission urged the City Council to keep the

park at its current location despite some complaints from two neighbors

about barking.

The council is expected to make a final decision on what has been a

controversial issue on May 6.

At its April 10 meeting, the panel also recommended adjusting the

hours of the Best Friend Dog Park for the third time in a year.

All of the four possible dog park sites are located in Huntington

Central Park. The two sites under immediate consideration are fraught

with headaches, officials said. A third site, a former shooting range,

also hasn’t presented any easy answers.

“There are a lot of unknowns [about the former shooting range],” said

Deputy Director Jim Engle. “Both of the two sites [on the table] have

problems. You’re just exchanging one problem for another.”

The leading contender for a new site was a 1.7-acre section of

parkland in the northeast corner fronting Gothard Street.

However, 130 residents who walk in that park signed a petition

protesting the move.

Preparing that site for a dog park would also be costly, about

$25,000, Engle said. The city would need to install fencing, new water

pipes and complete other improvements.

A second site sits across from the Central Library fronting Goldenwest

Street. That 16-acre site borders a disc golf course.

Engle said the site could work as a temporary site, but not a

long-term answer because it has limited access and would require a

two-year development of a master plan for the area.

Deposits of lead have been found at the former shooting range, located

east of Goldenwest near the city’s proposed sports complex.

City officials are trying to determine how much it would cost to clean

up the site.

Dog owners who use the existing park have rallied behind the park’s

operator, the Best Friend Dog Park Foundation.

“This is the best place for it, right here,” said city resident Marcus

Escarcida, who uses the park regularly. “So many people are so used to

coming here.”

The panel also recommended limiting the hours dog owners can use the

park, opening the eastern quadrant of the park from 7 to 8 a.m. on

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

The western, main section of the park would be open from 8 a.m. to 8

p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekends.