Cheaper ideas surface for Olympia dog park

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The Olympian

by Katherine Tam


OLYMPIA - City officials might fence off part of Priest Point and Yauger parks to create areas where people can let their pets run off-leash without getting ticketed.

The $80,000-per-park cost would be cheaper than creating a dedicated off-leash dog park from scratch. Building a new parking lot and sidewalks at an undeveloped site drives the cost up to as much as $650,000.

The 40-acre Yauger and 313-acre Priest Point parks were picked because they are large enough for one-third to three-fourths of an acre to be set aside for dogs.

In addition, neither is in an environmentally sensitive area or close enough to homes for noise to be a problem.

The city doesn't have money to create these areas, said Jonathon Turlove, parks program specialist. Money would have to be earmarked in the future, or advocates could raise it.

The Rover Group, a citizens advocacy group that supports an off-leash dog park, is waiting to hear what city officials approve before exploring a fund-raising campaign, member Kathy Evans said.

Olympia officials have had repeated requests for an off-leash dog park and launched a feasibility study this year. The report is available for public comment until July 6 before it reaches the City Council for a decision.

Thurston County is home to 11,768 licensed dogs, said Susanne Beauregard, director of Animal Services. Experts estimate the number of licenses is one-third of the actual dog population, which means there are probably 36,000 dogs countywide, she said.

There is no official off-leash dog park, but some people let their pets run in areas where leash laws aren't actively enforced. Popular areas include Priest Point Park, Garfield Elementary and other schools, a piece of church property on Fir Street and Tumwater's Pioneer Park.

"As Olympia fills in with residential developments with very small yards and multi-family and high-rise housing, the demand for off-leash dog areas will likely increase," the study found.

At Yauger and Priest Point parks, a number of dog owners said an off-leash field would be well-used, though some at Priest Point preferred off-leash trails.

Arne Jensen leashes his 13-year-old black Labrador around people because he knows loose dogs make some nervous.

"I think it would be well-received, and people who let their dogs off-leash can have an area to do so where they don't have to risk getting in trouble or feeling guilty," he said.

Diann Sheldon and Shuna Morelli own a 13-year-old Husky Shepherd and recently moved to Rainier from Oregon, where there are off-leash parks.

"The dogs would play, and the humans would sit around and talk about their dogs as if they were children," Sheldon said.

Park staff members are proposing a one-year pilot program after which the council would decide whether to keep the off-leash areas, enlarge them or shut them down.

Rules would be posted. Each area would be equipped with water, bag stations for dog waste and a double-gated entrance to prevent dogs from escaping.

There could be other amenities.

"They sell these drinking water fountains made for people and for dogs, where people drink out of the top and dogs have their own spigot down below," Turlove said.

An off-leash area at Yauger Park would be unusable from November to March when the park doubles as a stormwater facility. It's usually under water in the winter. In other cities, a citizens advocacy group usually takes charge of the upkeep, and raises funds to replenish doggie bags and other supplies, officials said.

62 percent said they would use it several times a week

28 p ercent said they would use it once a week

55 percent want several smaller facilities

26 percent want one regional dog park

23 percent want off-leash trails

13 percent want to have off-leash hours at an existing park