Local dog owners promote Crestwoods Park for off-leash dog area
UPDATED
The wheels have been set in motion to develop a Pilot Off-Leash Area (OLA) for dogs at Crestwoods Park, adjacent to Kirkland Junior High School in the Norkirk Neighborhood. According to this memorandum, the Parks Department is recommending to the Park Board that planning steps for an OLA commence this month and for the Park Board to present final recommendations to the City Council in July.
K.D.O.G., a local stewardship group of dog owners — more formally known as the Kirkland Dog Off Leash Group — has been actively promoting the development of an off-leash park in Kirkland. The group has an online petition with over 400 signatures from dog lovers in Kirkland, Seattle, Bothell, Redmond and Bellevue as of this writing.
K.D.O.G. spoke at the Norkirk Neighborhood Association’s December 3, 2008 meeting in which they fielded many questions from local citizens. The next Norkirk meeting will present a balanced set of perspectives on this issue to address the many concerns raised by neighbors. The primary concern voiced by those in attendance was the additional traffic an off-leash park would bring into the neighborhood. Currently, Marymoor Park in Redmond has one of the few off-leash dog park on the Eastside (Medina Park and Robinswood Park in Bellevue also have off-leash areas). Magnuson Park in Seattle is the next closest off-leash area for dogs.
At the Norkirk meeting, the K.D.O.G. representative said there were several possible sites under consideration including one not far from the Municipal Courthouse. It appears now that other potential sites are no longer going to be considered as Crestwoods Park is the only park in the recommendation. Some citizens of the Norkirk Neighborhood have expressed concerns as to the process of park selection and why Crestwoods Park is the only park under consideration.
The proposed off-leash area in Crestwoods Park would occupy a wooded area adjacent to baseball and soccer fields. The current use of the area is a wooded walking trail that winds along the ridge above the BSNF rail road tracks as it circles the perimeter Crestwoods Park. It is presumed that this walking trail would either be eliminated or re-routed as the off-leash park would likely not be compatible with the current use of that portion of the park. Currently, the start of the perimeter trail is marked with a carved wooden map located at the end of 18th Avenue.
According to the memorandum, “The Last month members of the Board toured off-leash dog facilities in Sammamish and Bellevue, and visited Crestwoods Park to determine if it might have a suitable area for such an amenity. Based on the Board’s informal discussions during the tour, there appears to be interest informally considering Crestwoods Park for a pilot off-leash area (OLA). The emergence of a local stewardship group of dog owners (K-DOG) has helped provide impetus for considering an OLA at this time.”
From the K.D.O.G. website:
Do you live in Kirkland and wish there was a dog park locally rather than having to go to Luther Burbank or Marymoor. We are looking for some responsible dog owners who want to work with the City of Kirkland to establish a dog park (or dog parks). Join up and we’ll try to set up a meeting time to strategize on how to get this done. Please sign our online petition: KDOG Petition
- Taxpaying dog owners and non-dog owners appreciate a local dog park where dogs can lawfully be off leash.
- Other cities including Seattle have shown that volunteers can effectively help run a local dog park with the city as their partner.
- Dog owners want to act within the law but also let their dogs enjoy exercise and socializing off leash. It will take some persistence but we can get it done!
Parks Department staff is recommending the Park Board request authority from the City Council to formally study the possibility of a pilot off-leash area at Crestwoods Park later this month.
Posted by Rob Butcher on Tuesday, January 13, 2009 at 7:45 am
Filed under Features · Tagged with City Council, Crestwoods Park, K.D.O.G., Norkirk, Parks
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Halle-woofin’-lujah!!! Kirkland Karma is finally moving in the right direction. Let’s hope our 2009 isn’t a do-over of ‘08(that was major pain).
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I’m concerned about this because during a ball game parking can get tight at Crestwoods. It they put in a dog run then they will come from all around to use it. These sorts of off the leash places are hard to find because nobody wants the increased traffic.
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This site is adjacent to residential houses unlike the off-leash areas in Marymoor Park and Magnuson Park. Local residents have expressed concerns about increased traffic on residential streets. If Crestwoods were to become by default, a regional draw for dog owners, this would be an even greater concern. Since there are no other off-leash areas anywhere nearby, this could be the case. There does seem to be a need for more off-leash parks in the area. That said, I don’t know what the criteria were for selecting Crestwoods as a possible location.
An article in the Seattle Times on the subject of dogs and the waste they produce was posted in the Forum:
http://www.kirklandviews.com/forum/open-discussion/dog-owner-says-rules-about-droppings-stink/#p38
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Location of a dog park is always a controversial issue. The perfect solution for me would be a Crestwoods location and dog owners walking their dogs to the new park – eliminating the parking issue and providing the dogs – and owners – with some well needed exercise at the same time. But, we know that will never be the case. We are “driving nation”, for better or for worse, and a park would rightfully attract “dogs from out of town” as well with the associated vehicles. Maybe the best solution is to leave the area “as is” since it is somewhat of a de facto dog haven anyway, even though my pooch has to be on a long lead.
A great example of a dog area in the Puget Sound region is of course Marymoor due to its massive size, relatively isolated location, and ease of parking (even though driving to exercise somewhat defeats the purpose). A poorer example is the dog area next to Green Lake in Seattle. It is far too small, cramped, and wet/muddy, even after a small amount of precipitation. I do not know which one the Crestwoods location would resemble but I fear it’d be the latter.
But all said, I’d support a dog park any day. For many of us, our dogs are our “children” and they deserve somewhere to “run free”. I just wish it’ll be somewhere to where I can walk!
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Well made points. You are right that it does seem rather odd that we get in the car and drive to a place to exercise our dogs. If off-leash parks are to be a part of the future for Kirkland, then we must account for how traffic and parking will affect the local neighborhood. An alternative could be to have more, smaller off-leash areas located throughout the City. That way you could walk to your local park.
I recall seeing off-leash areas in NYC. Your description of the off-leash area next to Green Lake sounds palatial in comparison. Picture a chain link fenced-in area no larger than half the size of a small residential lot in Kirkland. Everything is relative.
Thank you for your comments.
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I don’t believe now is a good time to add to the maintenance demand on our local parks by creating an off-leash area at Crestwoods Park. As I recall, the funding for “Muttmitts” was cut from the Parks budget. If the petitioners would be willing to ante up for the cost of the land and associated maintenance I would think differently.
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I’m sorry Rob, I posted in the wrong story.
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