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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-03-2017 PRC Item 4 - McKenzie To: Subject: John McKenzie RE: Laguna Lake Park - dog use area From: John McKenzie [ Sent: Thursday, April 27, 2017 1:21 PM To: E-mail Council Website <emailcouncil@slocity.org> Cc: Mudgett, Melissa <mmudgett@slocity.org> Subject: Laguna Lake Park - dog use area Hello Parks and Recreation Commission and City Council members, Lt SLO Clair' CLERK My name is John McKenzie, a resident of San Luis Obispo. I would like to advocate the establishment of a dedicated off leash dog park within the City of San Luis Obispo and seek the City's (Parks and Recreation Commission and City Council) support. I own two dogs, one of which is an energetic one year old rescue that really loves the wide open places to run! I have a small backyard and need to take him somewhere to release some of his puppy energy. The only recognized off leash area within the City is at Laguna Lake Park. However, this 'pilot' program of many years ago to recognize this 'dog area' did not provide any clear direction on its future. There has been no follow-up to formalize or dedicate this area for dogs! As such, there is no clear direction for the existing dog area and it currently suffers from several inadequacies and I feel is very under-utilized as a result. The following is a preliminary list of benefits of establishing such a dog park at Laguna Lake: 1. Minimize potential conflicts within the existing park and to surrounding uses, as the dog use area is better defined; 2. Provides for defined, controlled area to allow dogs off leash (great for dog wanderers, bolters, dogs not well connected to owners); water tubs allow satisfaction for the water -loving dogs; fewer lost balls in the weeds, etc.; 3. Allows for the separation of large and small dogs; 4. Keeps dogs away from uncontrolled water bodies/ muddy bogs that maybe polluted or smelly; Provides for defined area to apply all-weather material (e.g. bark chips, mulch, pea gravel, etc.); this area would be maintained, which would reduce the potential for tics; 6. Certain improvements could be made to improve the human experience (e.g., create central meeting area (gazebo, info kiosk); build wind wall; increase parking; create ADA walkways, etc.) The closest fenced dog parks can be found in the cities of Atascadero and Arroyo Grande, communities both smaller than San Luis Obispo, as well as at EI Chorro Park by Cuesta College. We need our own dedicated Dog Park! Based on a few assumptions (see below) the City likely has over 10,000 dogs within its city limits. Nationally over the last 15 years, there has been a steady increase (25%) of dogs in households. There are a lot of dog lovers such as myself that would appreciate the development of a dedicated off leash area. To this end, I believe the City should be taking the following steps: 1. Develop and send out a survey to existing and potential users of the existing park to determine the greatest interests on improvements; 2. Based on the survey results and consultation with other interested stakeholders, develop and approve a Design Plan; this Plan should include a priority of improvements for future funding purposes; 3. Change the Laguna Lake 'pilot' dog area to a permanently dedicated Dog Park; 4. As funding becomes available through grants, fundraising efforts or City coffers, work with the City to make improvements as specified in the Design Plan; 5. Develop and/or seek out volunteer groups (similar to successful efforts administered by the County [SLOPOST]) to help in the construction and/or maintenance of a dedicated park. Thank you for your consideration of this proposal and I hope you can provide direction to staff at your earliest opportunity to make this happen. I have been in contact with Melissa Mudgett with Parks and Recreation, who has been very supportive. I look forward to working with her and the City to help get this long, overdue facility built that will have demonstrable improvements for the City's dog lovers and the SLO life experience! Sincerely, John McKenzie 805-441-5894 oirr�nirn�rt:(zwJ���rri_i�Iiri[� r3r_i 10,000 dogs — Wow! Assumptions/Facts City of SLO pop — 47,339 (2015 census) Per national 2012 estimate, over 1/3 of households (35.6%) own 1-2 dogs (1.6 average/household). Based on the 2010 census for SLO there are 2.2 people per household; and if this is applied to the 2015 City pop., there are about 21,518 households. Based on these stats there are over 7,000 households with dogs, and when the 1.6 dog average is applied there would be over 10,000 dogs within the City of San Luis Obispo. Most city of SLO homes have small yards and limited area for dogs to run free. The smaller cities of Atascadero and Arroyo Grande have fenced dog parks; the County maintains six such parks throughout the county in even smaller communities. The closest county facility is at EI Chorro Park out by Cuesta College.