Members of city council were expected to pass the staff report and recommendation for North Bay’s second off-leash dog park at last night's city council meeting.
It would be located at the Laurentian Playground site on Carruthers Street.
But things took a turn when Coun. Mark King, chair of community services, referred the discussion back to committee, saying he just didn’t feel confident enough with the current breadth of information at hand.
“First off, I was very supportive of the dog park at the end of Premier Road,” King said. “One; because it was at no cost to the taxpayer—the construction was picked up by Bruman Construction, and two; the location was excellent because it was away from any residential area.”
To create this first dog park, the city entered into a generous lease agreement with the Humane Society to grant the use of land, located in Champlain Park. However, since the construction of the first dog park in 2014, there have been calls for a second one in a more centralized location.
But the idea of a too centralized location is what has King bothered.
“The problem I see with the site on Carruthers is it’s near a heavily populated residential area,” he said. “Plus, the way the report was drafted didn’t really provide the necessary information. There are questions that need to be answered and a number of other council members have had more questions too, so referring it back to committee is no big deal.”
King said he had heard a number of people against a dog park in that location and so wanted to give more time for the public to vocalize their thoughts. He also mentioned other locations were a possibility.
“Having a dog park in the south end and one in the north end of the city would make sense,” he said, “I’m a dog owner—I’ve had dogs forever, but one of the concerns seems to be the creeping into the system that the taxpayer would be responsible for people’s pets.”
Although the process has stalled, King still believes there is enough support on council for a second dog park to be built, but he hasn’t heard any real feedback, so he’s eager for the subject to return to committee for more discussion. However, he does feel at the point the second dog park Is still up in the air.
Take our poll: Where should a second dog park be located?
