In Vancouver, dog parks are about as controversial as bike lanes. Non-dog owners rail against them while dog owners complain about a lack of space.
Now the park board will spend $200,000 to develop a citywide dog strategy.
“We put out a request for proposals in late November and we’ll be starting with the team in the new year,” Tina Mack of the Vancouver Park Board said. “The team will include landscape architects, planners, communications people, and probably some graphics people.
“Even the sign in or off-leash dog are something unclear. we want to improve that as well.”
Estimates of dog ownership vary, but some studies suggest around one in four households in Metro Vancouver own at least one dog. Very often the only place to let dogs off-leash in denser parts of the city are parks with dog runs.
The city has tried numerous times to deal with off-leash rules and regulations. A decade ago Dr. Rebecca Ledger, an animal behaviourist, worked with stakeholders on the same issue.
“I think they spent around $30,000 trying to find answers and they actually got nowhere,” she said. “I think it is a huge challenge but at the end of the day, this is what we’re going to do.”
Like the bike lane issue, off-leash areas in public parks are about sharing space. Different groups with different needs in a finite space can be a recipe for conflict, but one that can be managed for a price.
-With files from Aaron McArthur
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