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■ Special off-leash tags & fee, use of City Park & increased enforcement recommended
BY RORY SEEBER
The Parks & Recreation Department presented a draft of its Dog Park Master Plan & Policy Recommendations for Denver Parks at two open houses last month. The plan, in development since June, was created by a Dog Park Task Force consisting of an internal Parks & Rec committee with input from an “external” or stakeholders’ committee.
The open houses were held Jan. 16 at Scheitler Recreation Center in Berkeley Park, 46th & Sheridan, and Cook Park Recreation Center, Monaco & Florida, Jan. 30 (after deadline).
The primary recommendation calls for upgrades to five existing dog
park facilities, improving staffing levels and enforcement,
establishing a volunteer partnership organization, and eventually
adding new facilities and services, including the use of off-leash
areas in City Park.
COURTESY OF THE PARKS & RECREATION DEPARTMENT
THE AREAS SHADED PURPLE in the southeast & southwest areas of City Park are being considered for off-leash dog areas for specified weekday hours only. York St. is at the left, Colorado right, 17th at the bottom & 23rd at the top.
Facility upgrades are set to begin this year, with the work
prioritized by need. The fenced off-leash areas at Fuller Park, 29th
& Franklin, and Berkeley Park will be renovated first.
Plans call for shade structures, trees, water sources (where
feasible), new “crusher fines” base material, seating, and educational
signage.
That work will be followed by improvements as needed at the fenced
off-leash dog area in Stapleton, Montview & Syracuse, and the
unfenced areas in Barnum Park, 6th & Federal, and near the Kennedy
Soccer Complex, Hampden & Dayton. The dog park at Green Valley
Ranch in Montebello needs no work. The upgrades would be funded by
existing Parks & Rec capital improvement funds.
A second recommendation in the draft plan calls for improving field staff levels and enforcement.
Given the city’s precarious financial status, the task force
suggests the creation of a “self-supporting funding mechanism” of new
fees and fines that will be designated for enforcement, dog park
maintenance and improvements, and the hiring of more Park Rangers and
Animal Control Officers.
The lack of enforcement of existing leash laws in the city’s
parks... especially those which have no officially designated off-leash
dog areas, such as Cheesman Park... has been a major complaint of those
who oppose the off-leash dog areas. Many people who now run their dogs
illegally in Cheesman and other parks say they will continue to do so,
even if fines are increased.
In addition to the increased penalties for off-leash, unlicensed or
unvaccinated dogs approved by the Board of Environmental Health last
year, the Dog Park Master Plan calls for a new fine for owners whose
dogs aren’t wearing a colored “Dog Park” tag, which could be purchased
in a sanctioned park or online.
A $10 charge is being recommended by Parks & Rec for the
specially-colored tag, which would allow use of the fenced and
unfenced, sanctioned off-leash locations. (The task force committees
recommended a $25 fee.) Non-residents of Denver could be charged $40.
It is possible that a special fee discount would be offered to
volunteers at the parks. A ten-day grace period to purchase a permit
tag is suggested for first-time offenders.
City Council would have to approve any new fees.
It is also proposed that vaccinations be separated from licensing
and that new fines be created for falsification of vaccinations.
A key segment of the recommended policies is an “Owner
Responsibility” form. By signing such a form a dog owner would affirm
that they understand voice and site control and all rules &
regulations for park usage.
The master plan also urges the future addition of new facilities
and services, though no timeline is given. New fenced off-leash areas
are suggested for Cook Park, Monaco & Cherry Creek Dr. South, and
near Vanderbilt Park, at about S. Platte River Dr. & Tennessee.
A privately-funded, fenced dog park with artificial turf is
scheduled to open this spring near Commons Park at 19th & Little
Raven. Called “Railyard Dogs Park,” it is a unique private/public
project developed in conjunction with Parks & Rec.
Parks & Rec will continue to search for surplus or vacant land for future possible dog park use.
A new off-leash hours program for City Park is recommended for a
one-year pilot. Thus far suggested hours are 5-9 am and 6-9 pm on
weekdays only. Dogs could be run off-leash only in specific areas of
the park. Use of the areas would likely be rotated (see map above).
In light of both the city’s fiscal difficulties and the shortage of
Parks & Rec staff, the establishment of strong volunteer
partnerships is seen as a crucial facet of implementing the Dog Park
Master Plan. It has been suggested that the DenFIDO group be
revitalized or a new partnership group developed.
A meeting for people interested in volunteer partnerships with the
city for the off-leash dog areas is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 8,
5:30-7 pm in Room 4.F.6 of the Webb Building, 201 W. Colfax. Call
720-913-0633 for information.
The following evening the draft of the plan will be the focus of an
open house hosted by the City Park Alliance at the Denver Museum of
Nature & Science, 2001 Colorado, 6-8 pm.
The draft of the Dog Park Master Plan must be approved by Parks
& Rec manager Kevin Patterson and City Council before
implementation of its recommendations could begin. According to project
manager David Marquardt of Parks & Rec, it is expected that it will
be submitted for approval this summer.
If approved, the upgrades to the existing facilities would probably
start before the end of the year and carry over to 2011. Marquardt said
that if the pilot program for City Park is carried forward as a final
recommendation, it would likely begin in mid- to late fall and last 12
months.
The draft of the master plan can viewed at denvergov.org/parksandrecreation. Comments can be sent to
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or Jill McGranahan of Parks & Rec at
720-913-0633 or
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