Kara and Audrey Flaig take their dogs Mika and Mya out for a walk in the old off-leash area at Kin Coulee Park in this 2016 file photo. The city is once again talking off-leash areas as they were an oft-mentioned concern in the public feedback portion of the recreation masterplan.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
The city will begin looking at potential changes to where off-leash dogs are allowed after tales of conflict on the trail system cropped up in masterplan engagement surveys last year.
Officials told council’s public services committee early Monday it has begun work examining off-leash areas in the city, specifically natural areas that often border the city’s heritage trail network. A release later in the day called for public feedback on the issue.
“(Trails) are one of our most cherished amenities” said Brian Mastel, the head of the division that oversees parks.
“It came up in (survey) engagement and it comes up quite often at bylaw services (enforcement) … People have varying levels of comfort with animals.”
The question of where dogs can roam off leash with their owner has been a common topic in Medicine Hat since 2011, when the off-leash issue was last decided in a bylaw stemming from a just-completed recreation masterplan.
That laid down that almost all manicured park space was considered on-leash, but in less official areas such as coulees and natural spaces, dog owners could unleash their animals.
“We’ve begun gathering information from other communities,” said James Will, director of the parks and recreation department. “We’ve taken almost the opposite approach of other communities where we say it’s almost everything that is off-leash, with the exception of certain areas.”
Work to update that larger recreation master plan last year found trails were listed as the outdoor priority for those who took part in master plan feedback sessions last years, with No. 2 being off-leash space, including several fenced, off-leash areas in the Flats and Gas City Campground.
A main take-away, say staff, was the public felt many areas that are left as natural spaces are being denigrated by off-leash users.
A medium-term priority for the department was to complete a biophysical study to determine which areas would be more suitable.
Another main complaint was that off-leash dogs bother some people.
“People have problems with dogs, including pedestrians, people on bikes,” said Coun. Alison Van Dyke, who sits on the police commission and said complaints to the authorities are common.
“I hope that people are respectful of no-dogs signs.”
Historic resource
At Monday’s meeting, the committee also supported a move to designate the cenotaph in Riverside Veterans Memorial Park as a municipal historic resource.
That will now move to city council for approval later this month.
The 100th anniversary of its dedication will be observed on May 22, 2022.
