Ford Trojanowski is a member of Sunnyside United Dog Society, or SUDS, the 40 member organization that is backing the plan for Torsney Park.
  

He sees a need for more open dog space in his neighborhood, which is already home to a significant dog population and is generally pet friendly. Trojanowski thinks it’s time Queens catches up with the rest of the city in accommodating them.   “In Manhattan, almost every neighborhood has a dog run,” he said. In comparison, Queens has only seven official dog runs, according to the Department of Parks and Recreation Web site. For “Bubba,” Trojanowski’s 5 year old mutt, and other Sunnyside dogs, the only nearby place to legally run off leash is in Windmuller Park, where there is a small fenced off patch of dirt on the side of a hill. While this run was maintained at one point, it has fallen into disrepair and—in Trojanowski’s estimation—is not safe for either dogs or people.
  

SUDS has been working for years to find a suitable place for a run. An idea floated over a year ago for Torsney Park proved unworkable due to concerns about dogs mingling with children on the adjacent playground. Both community board members and SUDS agree that the new plan is more promising.
Pat O’Brien, chairman of Community Board 2’s City Services and Public Safety Committee, explained that the run would likely be located along the western edge of the park. It would have a separate entrance away from the children on the playground and would also be close to a water source as well, which could help SUDS keep the run clean, Trojanowski added.
   The plan for Sherry Park calls for it to be split in two, keeping the front open to the general public and reserving the rear for dogs.
  

Building the runs would take a little work—such as constructing fences and possibly relocating basketball nets in Torsney Park—but O’Brien expects the current proposals will require only minimal money. Neither the funding source nor the exact details of the runs have been worked out, although Sherry Park is already in use, albeit unofficially, by dog owners.
The city locked up the out of the way park some months ago after it started attracting vagrants and became, as O’Brien put it, “overrun, overgrown and unsightly.”
Recently, the Parks Department has handed over the keys to the local Woodside based dog group that is hoping to establish the run. The Parks Department is allowing members to use the area while they work toward a formal maintenance agreement and the community board considers the proposal.
O’Brien also notes that Woodside and Sunnyside are already “terribly underserved as far as parks and open space.” Making more room for dogs by reassigning some of that precious park may be objectionable to some non dog people, he said. But at this point, the community board hasn’t made any recommendations.
  

Trojanowski points out that dog runs can be beneficial to the community at large. Not only is a well socialized dog likely to be less aggressive, but dog runs also bring a constant flow of people through the parks. The presence of responsible citizens can serve as a deterrent for would be vandals and other criminals, he said.
  

A public hearing on the proposals will be held at the next Community Board 2 monthly meeting, Thursday, June 1 at 7 p.m. at the Sunnyside Senior Center, 43 31 39th St., Sunnyside.

View the original article