San Carlos Parks and Recreation Director Doug Long was agreeable to experimenting with an off-leash dog program in the city at Burton Park and the six-month long pilot program has been so successful, it will continue.
Long says the dog owners enthusiastically took the leash and created their own website to help with self-policing.
"The demand for a dog park or areas where dog owners can have their dogs off-leash has grown steadily over the last three years," Long detailed in a report to the Parks and Recreation Commission. "Dog owners like the social experience offered to both dog owners and dogs in a park setting. Since the inception of an off-leash pilot program, approximately 100 dog owners are utilizing the offleash areas from 3 to 7 days a week."
The dog owners group established a website, sancarlosdogs, and developed printed material that was distributed to off-leash dog owners when they visited Burton Park.
"It is clear that the offleash pilot program at Burton Park has been a success," Long writes. "The off-leash program has worked in harmony with all other
programs scheduled at the park including sports programs and summer camps."
The off-leash program at both Highlands and Burton parks will be closely scrutinized to ensure they are in compliance with the terms and conditions as set forth by the Parks and Recreation Department.
The full report can be found here: Off-Leash Pilot Program at Burton and Highlands Parks.
