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Sunnyside canine owners press for dog runs in parks |
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Written by Adam Pincus, Times Ledger
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Thursday, 01 June 2006 |
A group of dog owners in Sunnyside is proposing a small area in a neighborhood park as a place to exercise their canine friends - a plan that has already drawn criticism from some neighbors.
The 5-year-old Sunnyside United Dog Society, known as SUDS, is hoping to construct a dog run in a strip of blacktop in Torsney Park that is currently occupied by two basketball backstops.
Having dogs in the park is good for the neighborhood, said dog society co-chairman Rick Duro, who added that more than 100 local dog owners are supporting the plan and about 10 times that number signed a petition about 1 1/2 years ago.
"If you put it in that spot, there is still room for two or three soccer games," said Duro. "And there are more people with dogs than people who play handball."
The dog run plan is one of two being proposed on the Community Board 2 agenda at its monthly meeting this Thursday. The other is in Sherry Park, located on the north side of Queens Boulevard between 65th Street and the southbound exit ramp of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.
Several Sunnyside residents, who are also dog owners, said early this week that they were not supportive of the plan.
"No way," said Magnolia Gonzalez, a Sunnyside Gardens resident and dog owner. She opposes a park there "because of the dog barking, the noise and sanitation. I have young children and a sick father."
Several other people questioned this week were opposed.
Duro said a dog run would help improve the area because the group could teach pet owners how to clean up after their animals.
"People need to be educated on dogs," he said.
The proposal in Torsney was the second in as many years. An earlier proposal from SUDS to put the dog area in the upper playground was rejected by the community board because it could have endangered children nearby if a dog had escaped, District Manager Dolores Rizzotto said.
The new proposed dog area is about 70 feet long and about 20 feet wide, located at the western edge of the blacktop park, and would be created by an existing wall on the west, and additional fencing that could be constructed to create a entrance to the run for the dogs only.
Duro said that in a conversation more than a year ago, Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Sunnyside) indicated he would support the dog run, but the legislator was not immediately available to comment on the proposal.
Duro was confident that there would be local support for the plan because he has heard no complaints from neighbors, although he acknowledged that there might be some disagreement. "People who live near the park would be happy if no one used the park," Duro said. "But we are allowed in there."
A 20-year-old Department of Parks and Recreation policy, known as the "accommodation hours," permits dogs to be unleashed in parks from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m., said Parks spokesman Warner Johnston. At other hours, dogs are allowed while on a leash.
Reach reporter Adam Pincus by e-mail at
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or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154. |
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