Press

April 12th, 2007, Telegram Tribune

Arroyo dog park proposal may not wander far away

Liability problem hangs up Elm Street site, the popular choice; it’s not a lost cause yet

By Larissa VanBeurden-Doust

The search is on again for a place to create an off-leash dog park in Arroyo Grande, but hope is not completely gone for a site previously identified as a good spot.

The city has been working with the all-volunteer Five Cities Dog Park Association to turn a 2.5-acre drainage basin off Elm Street into an off-leash dog park. The land is owned by the city but is located in Oceano.

The city’s Parks and Recreation Commission approved the idea in January, but efforts were stalled after the city proposed a lease that would have made the association responsible for getting liability insurance. Association representatives said while they would be willing to pay to create and maintain the park, they were not OK with assuming liability.

Parks employees came up with several options for the commission to consider Wednesday night, all of which focused on the Elm Street property, but varied on who would take responsibility for liability.

After weighing the options and hearing from association members, the four-member commission decided unanimously to ask the county — which has jurisdiction over the unincorporated property — to create a park with the city, with both agencies taking some responsibility.

Commissioners also directed staff to work with members of the Five Cities Dog Park Association to see if there are areas in alreadybuilt parks that could be used for a dog park.

“I don’t think we should write off either one of the possibilities at this point,” said Commissioner Ron Addison.

While supporters and commissioners agreed that the Elm Street site would work well as a dog park because neighbors have agreed to it and it has enough parking, there were issues with water as well as liability.

Though Arroyo Grande owns the site, it would have to be served water by the Oceano Community Services District. Connecting to that system could cost $18,000. Water would be needed for grass, which would work better than other materials such as decomposed granite because the property also serves as a drainage basin.

After the meeting, association President Cynthia Ecklund said she was pleased with the commission’s decision.

“We would like to have a dog park tomorrow, but issues need to be resolved,” she said, adding that a dog park is “going to happen.”

Once city staff has worked through both recommendations, it will go back to the commission for consideration. From there, it will go to the City Council for final approval.

If approved, the dog park would be the first of its kind in the Five Cities. There are five other such parks countywide, at Heilmann Regional Park in Atascadero, at Main Street and Santa Rosa Creek Road in Cambria, at El Chorro Regional Park and Laguna Lake Park in San Luis Obispo and at Nipomo Community Park. Morro Bay recently approved a portion of Del Mar Park as an off-leash area.