Alert. Meeting Place Changed

Next Tuesday's meeting has been moved to the Portland Building downtown. The address is:
August 3, 2004 - 5:00pm - 7:00pm
The Portland Building
(downtown)
1120 SW 5th
2nd Floor/Room B

Parking is available off-street and in the Smart Park between 2nd & 3rd on
SW Jefferson.

New leash laws encourage abuse

Despite claims that the new leash rules were being planned before the Laurelhurst poisonings, it was widely viewed as a victory for the evil person who did it. By creating rules that imply that dogs are so dangerous that they must be tightly regulated (and violations harshly punished), the city has sent a message that dogs and their owners are fair game for threats and violence. And there are several unhinged people all over the city that have heard the city's message. Here's a sign I saw today posted at a middle school play lot:

Instead of being a reasoned and reasonable response to some legitimate concerns about how we use our parks in Portland, the new rules were a draconian response that almost overnight stripped a large percentage of neighborhood park users of their use of the parks. Measures like this reward and provide cover for people who have no qualms about injuring or killing dogs, their owners, children and other users of city parks.

This is not the only example. Many people who were exercising with their dogs have been intimidated and threatened while at the park. And don't forget the poor dog that acutually got shot with a gun at Mt. Tabor.

UPDATE:
The police department used a metal detector to retreive more than 100 hand-cut triangular spikes that were embedded in the ground throughout the school grounds with one sharp point facing upwards. More were found last week. Don't know if it's another sewing of spikes or overlooked spikes...

They do get letters

Saw this on the Parks & Rec Comment page and thought it was good enough to reproduce here. Thanks to whomever wrote it.

I am a resident of the Woodstock area, right across from Woodstock park. From the day we moved in last August I noticed what a lovely place it was for the dog owners that frequented it. People are conscientious about keeping an eye on their dogs and making sure everyone is safe. The organization of our park has the children's play area on the opposite side of the hill from where the dogs play. The geography of the park makes it an excellent area for off leash, since the dogs are much more interested in each other than the kids. My concern is that your committee is forming policy without actually seeing the interactions of dogs and people. I would ask you to come to the park one afternoon and just watch. No media event, or show - just a sunny afternoon - I believe you would be impressed by what you see. A community coexsisting as it was meant to be. Without the afternoon hours available I believe you will be hard pressed to find anyone in the park. This is a sad state for a county that charges a surplus for community services and then constricts who can use those services. The other day I watched two small children, no more than 4 or 5 playing completely out of sight of their parents. I watched for sometime as they played and still no sign of attending adults. The only adults I did see were those making sure that their dogs stayed away from them. In speaking with a woman who is in the park regularly with her dog, she explained that this same family was one that complains at every meeting that their children are "attacked by dogs every time they are in the park" I would think if this mother was really worried, she would not let her children be completely out of sight. Now should all children be confined because of the actions of one family? No. The majority of parents are responsible, attentive and involved. I would say the same is very true of dog owners. Parks are a part of the community and should be for all to enjoy, two and four legged alike.

Dog owners are good for park safety

It's not a far-fetched assertion that parks are safer when they are populated with people. Frequently when I visit a park -- any park -- the only people there are those with dogs. So if you want to discourage crime, encourage dogs. In fact, at one school I frequent with my dogs, the principal actually wants people to exercise their dogs there (off leash!) because it helps to limit vandalism and graffiti. It's an arrangement that benefits both.

A decade or so ago, I'm told, Mt. Tabor was riddled with crime: drug and alcohol use, prostitution, vandalism, etc. Being an undesirable location because of the crime, dog owners were given an OK by the city to take there dogs there (figures). Since that time it has become one of the most popular spots in town to exercise one's dog. But that's changing. Due to the harassment (see Dog Rodeo?), fewer people are taking their dogs there. Today, a man was robbed at gunpoint at Mt. Tabor. Think there is a connection?

Highly restrictive off leash rules discourage density

Despite what some may wish, just because the city has begun restricting where dogs can go off leash, it doesn't mean that people will not have dogs, or not have big dogs, or not take their dogs to parks and other public spaces. People in Portland will continue to have dogs even as yards get smaller and more condos are built. The fact that we, as a city, are becoming more densely populated is a good thing (for many, many reasons).

For many of us, our dogs aren't like gerbils, or box turtles, but members of the family. Consequently, we will, and do, make decisions with their interests in mind. At one of my neighborhood parks (sadly, no longer an "off-leash" space), a neighbor lamented that they bought their current house (a mere one block away) specifically because they would be able to exercise their dog there. Another neighbor claims that he and his wife recently purchased a car in order to take their dog to Normandale park which is several miles away. They didn't really need a car otherwise.

I’ve heard that some are apparently worried about dogs impact on wildlife, including some at the Audubon society. I suppose that some dogs might harm our feathered friends (I've never see it happen). But by campaigning for highly restrictive leash laws, though, I don't think they are seeing the forest for the trees. I know I'm not the only one who is presently looking for a house with a larger-than-standard-50x100-foot lot so I can exercise my dogs during the day. And just where can one find one of these yard-rich houses? Yep, the edges of the city and the suburbs. Can sprawl really be better for birds and other wildlife than a few dogs off-leash in our parks? And, as I said before, harassing and restricting dog owners won’t make dogs disappear. They'll still be around...on leash or otherwise.

(Does anyone even have any statistics on damage that dogs might have on wild birds? Seems an odd connection to make to me. The cats next door – which seem to be at our house half the time --  kills several, maybe dozens, each month and I haven't heard about anyone petitioning the city about it. Ironically, my dog (with my encouragement) convinced one of them to let go of a newly caught young raven a month ago. Who knew? Both the cat and the bird were unharmed.)

Lastly, an article in the Oregonian a few weeks ago pointed out that the recent father-daughter residents of Forest Park cut down 6 trees to build a shelter, carved out large swastikas in an eroding hill, deposited much refuse, and dammed a small creek in the park. The total damage was about $10,000. (No word on how many wild creatures were eaten or otherwise harmed.) When asked, a county spokesperson explained that "funding is tight and the park department's priority is going after dog owners violating leash laws in neighborhood parks".

Pretty much sums it up.

Another day...

Here's another shot of Colonel Summers park at 5:20 on Friday afternoon:

And Sewellcrest at around the same time (4:50 p.m. on Friday, July 16):

Portland Mercury article

Here's a good short article in the Portland Mercury.
 
"[T]he new park rules favor a small group of vocal residents and fail to take into account the thousands of dog owners who simply, silently, and responsibly used the parks for years. For example, recognizing that the number one complaint about dogs in the parks is poop, for the past decade dog owners and citizen groups have asked that the city fund more trash cans and dog poop bag distribution kiosks. But the city has balked, saying they don't have the funding. (Oddly, the fines collected for off-leash violations do not help fund the city's parks. Instead, it's the county who is responsible for enforcement and those fines go into a general slush fund. The city does not receive a dime.) "

Dog Rodeo?

Despite the fact that this new program was implemented in the wake of the Laurelhurst dog poisonings, it was pretty clear from the onset that this program was never put in place to protect the welfare of dogs and their owners. But we never expected the enforcement to actually harm dogs. Maybe it is? My neighbor described how his dog was actually lassoed to the ground by an over-zealous parks official at Mt. Tabor, as if his gentle chocolate lab was a wild and dangerous crocodile. My neighbor was within a few feet of his dog and the two of them were only a short distance from the official off-leash area, yet no attempt was made by the park official to first communicate with the dog's owner. His dog wasn't physically injured, but the brute force treatment sure left a bad taste in his mouth. What's next? Tranquilizer guns? 

Where are the people?

While speaking with dog owners at area parks, I've heard many descriptions of what the parks are like these days: empty, scary, eerily quiet. As one man asked at Mt. Tabor last night, "Where are all the people? It was claimed that people were staying away from the parks because of dogs, but I'm here twice each day and almost all of the people I see, if I see anyone, has a dog." 
 
I went to my neighborhood park, Colonel Summers, during what should be, if the dog hours are any guide, peak time: 5:30 pm on a Thursday. This is a large park, and no one was there. No one was playing tennis, baseball, or even basketball. Not one person. But this is not unusual. Come take a walk in the park with me (um...don't bring your dog, tho).
 
 
 

Please attend this meeting on August 3rd

The Off-Leash Dog Advisory Committee will meet on August 3rd at 5:00 pm at the State Office Building (near Lloyd Center) located at 800 NE Oregon St., Room 140. It's very important that dog owners unhappy with the current park regulations and harsh enforcement attend to voice their opinions before these (or worse) laws are locked in!