by Debbie / Special to the OB Rag
On July 22nd, a meeting of the Dusty Rhodes park board was held and numerous locals attended with complaints of the recent rash of small dog mauling and deaths from larger dogs (see here for our earlier coverage). Monica Honoré 0f the City of San Diego Park and Recreation Department was in attendance.
One gentleman testified about his experience with a fatal attack back in December 2007 and voiced his support of a separate area for small dogs in addition to the need for separation of entrance ways to keep large dogs away from small dogs and vice versa.
Finally, the local board voted to approve a separate fenced area for small dogs. The city has obtained bids for the fencing. Enough money is available in the dog park reserve fund plus a recent allocation of $3,000 from Councilmember Faulconer’s office for fencing, a fountain, labor and the associated requirements of ADA compliance. (A thank you to Mr. Faulconer!)
The next step is to bring the plans to the City Council for approval – which won’t be until sometime in September. The next meeting of the Dusty Rhodes park committee will address rules and regulations associated with the small dog park and the installation of a lock box for comments, observations, suggestions etc. by those that visit the park.
One of the television stations showed up and interviewed a few members of the public (not sure what station or if a segment aired). Other interested people should voice their suggestions or concerns by attending the next meeting on Thursday, September 23rd @ 5:30 p.m. at the OB Rec Center.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
This is welcome news! Finally I’ll be able to take my little dog to the park again.
This is a good thing. As the companion of a bossy 4 1/2 lb. Pomeranian we need to protect the big dogs.
Really?
We need some of those fences down on dog beach and over on Newport.
We have to keep those big dogs and small dogs separated!
Yes, but a lot of people have multiple dogs (big & small). And not all big dogs will attack small dogs. Plus, the small dog area is up to 30 pounds. An agressive 30 pound dog could easily kill a 2 lb dog. And what about dog breeds with a tendancy towards dog-agression? What if I wanted to ban those breeds from dog parks? Actually, some cities have a pit bull ban at dog parks. People need to be more focused on BEHAVIOR rather than SIZE….
Did anyone attend the meeting on the 23rd? Just wondering if we have any updates.