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This overhead view shows the location of the off-leash dog park proposed for Oak Canyon Community Park in the Oak Park area.
Oak Park dogs may get off-leash park
to walk un-furry friends
April 18, 2008
By John Phane
The Oak Park Recreation and Park Planning Committee, an advisory committee that advocates matters of interest of Oak Park residents to the elected board of directors of the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District, recently voted to support the construction of a 1.27-acre off-leash dog park in Oak Canyon Community Park. If approved by the district board, the dog park will be constructed in the area that is currently being used as an archery range. A hearing by the district board to discuss the park is scheduled for 7 p.m. July 17 in Oak Park.
Simi Valley is currently building a canine area at Big Sky Park. Calabasas has a small dog park and Thousand Oaks has a large park with separate areas for small and large dogs. The Thousand Oaks park is called the most-used facility in the Conejo Recreation and Park District. There are no plans in either Agoura Hills or Westlake Village to build a dog park at this time, district staff said.
Ed Hayduk, district assistant general manager, gave a presentation on the possibilities for and implications of an off-leash dog park. He said there is funding in the park district budget to see such a park constructed this year. He said there is also dollars can be made available for continuing irrigation and maintenance.
If approved for construction by the board of Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District, it would take at least six months to complete planning, such as needed parking spaces, estimates of usage and trip generation, and to garner the needed permits for construction, he said.
Two options were proposed: a .71-acre facility, or with some grading, a 1.27-acre park. The cost for the larger park was estimated at about $150,000. It would include a drinking fountain for the dogs, two tables and four benches, a fence, and it would be hydroseeded so it would become a grassy area. No lights are proposed at this time.
He said the proposed park area is in the pathway of a course used by the Oak Park High School Cross-Country Team. It is proposed that there will be gates constructed on that pathway for ingress and egress of the team. It is also proposed that the park be closed for use by pet owners on days that the team would be using that running course.
Two groups butted heads for use of the area. It is currently set up as an archery range and about a dozen people attended the meeting to fight for the range’s continued existence. The majority of the rest in attendance, about 70-80 people, were in favor of dismantling the archery range and constructing a dog park.
A concern about insurance and the possibility of lawsuits was broached. It was suggested that there could be fights between animals running free in the park as well as injury to humans inside the area. Hayduk said a dog park is a permitted facility under terms of the insurance that covers the district.
A major hurdle acknowledged is access to the area. It is across a large grassy area from current parking and up a secluded trail. It was broached it could be dangerous for persons alone to travel.
Additionally, a stream bisects the trail, and those traveling to the park will be forced to ford the waterway. It swells in the rainy season, and it was projected that the park would be closed if the water gets too high. District staff said the process of obtaining permits to build a bridge is arduous and that there is no plan to erect any structure over the stream.
There was discussion on how to police the area once it’s constructed. A committee member said he envisioned the creation of a nonprofit foundation to garner funds for continued maintenance if the park is constructed, and to oversee use of the park, helping to ensure such challenges as ensuring pet owners clean up after animals. It was also suggested that tags be sold to Oak Park residents for their pets and the funds used to underwrite the area.
While the tags would not be mandatory as it was acknowledged there will be users from other area traveling to use the facility, it was suggested that resident peer-pressure could be used to see Oak Park residents obtain the tags.
The motion to forward a recommendation to construct the facility was given in five parts:
1. Design and construct a 1.27 acre dog park at the archery range location.
2. Find alternative site for archery range if resident use warrants.
3. Perform a nine-month evaluation on the interim dog park.
4. Give designing and constructing a children´s splash pad equal priority as the dog park. (The splash park is proposed for Oak Canyon Community Park.)
5. RSRPD should provide consideration for separating the dog park into small and large dog sections.