Dog Park

This town really needs a dog park. I know this town needs many things…but a dog park should be at the top of the list…for many reasons.

*less dog poop on the sidewalks
*better socialised dogs=less agression
*a dog park is an asset
*people will be less likely to break leash rules and poop scoop rules
*can actually generate a little bit of money for the town
*can be a fun social gathering for dog owners

My idea, and I sent this to Shiela Gordon-Payne on council…

is to use Doug Kerr ball diamond as a dog park. The costs to get it ready would be very minimal. Reinforcing of chain link in areas and put either a key code gate or a locking key gate…oh and poop bags of course.

Charge people a nomimal yearly fee to use the park anywhere from 2- - 50 dollars per year…or per 6 month period and this would pay for grass cutting and there might even be some left over at the end of the day.

The key card gate would be better as the code can be changed every 6 months…or per year when dues are due. You would only need a letter for people to sign absolving the town of any lawsuits…one contact person to bring complaints too…I could do that. And voila!..instant dog park.

what do you guys think?

People still use that diamond though…

I’m not yet familiar with the geography here so let me ask.
Is there not a city owned waterfront location that could be used
for a dog park?.

I agree that we need a park of some kind.

I am 100% behind this idea!  At the very least checking it out with the City and seeing if something like this is possible.  According to the City website, there appears to be four fields they maintain: 

"In addition to the Recreation facilities at the Jim Ciccone Civic and Earl Mah Aquatic centres, the City of Prince Rupert maintains a number of playing fields around town:

    Three(3) Baseball Diamonds adjacent to the Civic Centre (Doug Kerr Field, Maguire Field and the Ladies Diamond)
    One (1) Baseball Diamond at Roosevelt Park Community School
    One (1) Soccer field and track Adjacent to the Civic Centre (Patullo Field)
    Two (2) Public Tennis Courts (1 set of double courts on McBride Street and 1 set of double courts on Second Avenue West) "

princerupert.ca/page.php?id_ … _section=4

Now, what I do not know if how often those baseball fields are used?  I know there is a recreational/bar league in town, but does anyone know how often they are used?  Or if anyone has any other suggestions of possible places?

One that comes to mind, but I do not know who owns it, so I am not sure how easy they would be to use - is the section of land that is near the curling rink - I believe that area may have been used for housing, as there were open foundations there that have been filled in.  It is almost completely fenced in - one spot near the water and then the entrance ‘gate’ would need to be closed.  But again - I am unaware as to who may own it and how easy it would be to ‘get it’.

Keep me posted on any news you hear back from the City - I’d be more than willing to assist in trying to get this idea off the ground.

that diamond is rarely used…as the weeds on the diamond itself can attest to.
I know ball players complain regularly about people using the other diamonds to run their dogs in and not scooping…so this would hopefully ease that problem as well.

There is no fenced in area along the waterfront for a dog park…not a secure one at any rate.

I dont know anything about the land by the curling rink or how to go about finding out…will have to drive down and check it out this week.

I did send a letter to Sheila…but other than that…I’ve no idea on how to proceed beyond wishful thinking…

any help or advice at all would be greatly appreciated

What about the diamond at the corner of P. R. Blvd. and Crestview.
That’s another large, grassy, fenced field.  Is that city property too? Should be.

That is a city field, but it was too small for use by anyone other than a grade four it seems, back in the day, the ball flew over the fence any time we played softball anything more than a normal double or fly ball anywhere else would go off to the woods.

Haven’t seen it used very much since, maybe Kanata used it when it was still open, it would however seem to be fairly easy to set up as a dog park I suspect, though I’m not sure how the neigbhours there would feel about any canine invasion… 

[quote=“ThePodunkian”]
maybe Kanata [/quote]

Took liberties on your post, sorry, but since there are no kids there and no purchasers in sight. Temporary possibility anyway.

I often stop right next to that field when I pick up my daughter at a friend’s house.  I often see people letting their dogs go for a run on the field.

Anyone who owns property in that area knows that they are living close to a play field that can get noisy, be it kids or dogs playing there.

Its not fenced all around…just the sides adjacent to the streets.  I can’t imagine it being too pricey to fence the remaining.

I am for a dog park anywhere in town, even the ever popular user pay system.  Doug Kerr field only recently started being used by the Civic Centre to run their tee ball programme.  That only runs for a few weeks in the spring.  I am sure they could utilize one of the other fields.  One thing about Doug Kerr field is that the fence is rather short and some dogs may be able to jump over it easily.

I believe CN owns most of the usable land along the waterfront.  Kanata is a good idea as it isnt in the middle of a residential area but, again, there isn’t a fence circling the field.

There’s an old school between 7th and 8th East… King Edward?  The feild behind there would be almost perfect, as it is mostly fenced already.

They actually use that for dog obedience school too.

Well, if we were to have a dog park, I’d like some form of water so the dogs could take a swim if they wanted to.  :smiley:

The ball fields like Doug Kerr and Crestview would be in use every summer… if the Minor Baseball or Minor Softball association still existed.  There hasn’t been any form of city-league softball run here for a number of years… the kids only get to play with their school teams. 

Doug Kerr is used for elementary softball, and during the summer, it’s usually a sure thing that the offspring of slo-pitch players are frolicking in that field while their parents play at either Chris Maguire, or the Ladies diamond.  If it was up to me, I wouldn’t be putting a dog park down there, as that field has always meant softball to me.

Roosevelt is a no go.  Eventhough it’s a huge field, the whole thing is used by Minor Soccer every spring and summer, as well as Kaien Island Slo-Pitch for a couple games a week.

There is another field that no one has mentioned… and that’s Kootenay, on the corner of Kootenay and McKay street.  We used to play slo-pitch there up until 3-4 years ago, but now the all-sand and gravel field is so overgrown with weeds that no one uses it.  The only drawback to using that field for a dog park would be that all the kids in the neighborhood would be around and would want to play with the dogs.

Wasn’t the area between the McBride street bridge/skate park and the stairs to 7th East being talked about as a possible dog park too?

Really?  We just started obedience last week and it’s at the school that is at the end of 2nd west - Westview?  There’s probably more than one trainer in Rupert though, hey?

I was discussing this idea with a friend of mine earlier tonight, and she had some good points that I think we need to be aware of on our quest for a dog park (she doesn’t live in Rupert - but in a city that has a dog park).

Aside from fencing to make sure the area is safe for dogs - there will always be some dog owners that will use the park and won’t abide by its’ rules.  Not picking up after their dog, not keeping an eye on their dog - this can lead to other dogs possibly getting hurt, or people being bitten as well.  If we were able to get city backing for the park then it would stand to reason that any rules could be enforced possibly by bylaw officers - but I wonder how consistent they would be.  I don’t see someone not picking up their dogs’ poop as a high priority for the enforcers.  That being said - if the park went ahead then we would have to be ‘ok’ with that fact - that we might have to pick up more than our own dogs’ excrement.  

Something else to think about is dividing the park into two areas - one for small dogs, one for large.  I would hate to see a large dog injure a small dog - and I don’t necessarily mean intentionally - a large dog can sometimes forget their own size when wanted to play and inadvertently injure a smaller dog.

I think that’s about it for now - I’m too tired to remember if there was anything else she said hehehe…

I believe that getting nicer and better parks for our children is much more important, they need to have something which is supervised properly and where they can be safe from the hustle of city streets and corrupt. The city tore them down the city should erect them maybe then we can talk doggie parks.

you speak as if a ‘doggie’ park is something frivalous. It really isnt. It is something that any township has need of for safety…health…educational…and yes recreational purposes.

I never said it was a top priority…but I do strongly believe it should be a high priority. I’m not asking for the world…I’m only asking for unused areas to be considered as a dog park.

Do dog parks have issues? Of course they do. Any time you get more than two people together your going to get issues. There will be people who dont pick up. People who dont police their dogs. People who are just plain annoying. Your also going to get people who not only pick up after their dogs but go that extra mile to make Prince Rupert a great place to live.

So before dismissing the idea…think about the both the pro’s and the con’s.

“frivalous” is spelt “frivolous”

Dog park might be a bad thing.  Gonna be a lot of knocked up dogs u think?