Dear Dog Park Patrons,
We've heard many complaints in regard to our decision to close both the town's dog parks at the same time.
We’re appreciative of your concerns and we consider them thoughtfully. Dog parks are an important amenity that we offer through Parks, Recreation and Community Services. We understand that many of our dog park patrons are not happy with the decision to close two dog parks at the same time. Our chief concern is to provide you with outstanding services, and when it comes to your parks and your tax dollars, we take the responsibility of stewardship seriously. This spring season, there are multiple reasons for the closure of both town-owned dog parks (March 24-May 6) which was first announced on March 8 through our website, social media, email (to dog park user groups) and physical signs posted at our dog parks.
As you may know, supply chain issues have been the source of many delays since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. We’ve encountered both shipping delays and supply shortages of seed, fertilizer, and other crucial items. Favorable growing conditions have been cut short due to late supply deliveries as cooler nighttime temperatures are needed for seed germination, and we quickly approach summer temperatures.
In addition, our dog parks have seen increased, heavy use over the past two years, and the turf, landscaped areas, and irrigation systems need repair. Furthermore, when we’ve rotated open/closed dog parks in the past within a few weeks of one-another, this has created conditions where closure of one park has led to increased traffic at the other. This has resulted in extensive damage to freshly planted grass on the first field to open in the rotation, wasting public resources, time, and effort of town staff. The very purpose of this maintenance is to ensure a hospitable, safe and inviting place for residents and their pets.
With all of this said, we’re trying something new this year to address these issues directly. Staff is trying to think outside the box, in hope that it will provide a better experience for our residents and their beloved pets. We hope that closing both parks simultaneously will allow both fields ample time for the newly planted seed to take purchase while nighttime temps are cooler. This will give us the opportunity to begin a new maintenance rotation. After both dog parks have been completely repaired, we will begin a new, six-month rotation of the large and small dog areas. Our hope is that this will mitigate the damage caused by larger canine breeds to turf and irrigation systems. Next fall, with these changes and repairs complete, we will be able to close the dog parks one at a time instead of simultaneously.
We understand how important outdoor time is for our residents and their furry friends, and it’s expressly for this reason that we want to improve the conditions in our parks and make sure that they serve you well in the years to come. We encourage our dog park users to continue walking their dogs on-leash in all our parks. We hope that our park patrons will understand our reasoning and accept some short-term inconvenience in trade for better conditions for pets and people alike as we work toward a better system for managing dog park turf and the irrigation systems that support them.
Original source can be found here.
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