Why an unofficial dog park with a real sense of community might get shut down by Sacramento
An all-out revolt is brewing in a picturesque de facto dog park in Sacramento, and on Friday afternoon, a 16-year-old mostly-blind Maltese-terrier mix named Charlie toodled around in the grass, none the wiser.
Though many people bring their canine companions to Curtis Park’s Sierra 2 Center, the city of Sacramento intends to start enforcing leash requirements. Signs are set to go up within the next two weeks telling park-goers that off-leash dogs are prohibited.
John Malin, a Curtis Park resident, comes to the park with Toby the puppy once a week. He doubts the city policy will stick. “I have a hard time believing anybody’s gonna follow that.”
But Sierra 2, the city said, is an off-the-books dog park. While the grassy field was cleared for use as a dog training area during specified hours more than 20 years ago, civil servants never intended it to be the full-fledged dog park it has become.
“The park in its current state does not meet the requirements of a dog park for off-leash use and continued use presents health and safety issues that (Youth, Parks, Community & Enrichment) must address,” the city said in a statement.
The area where dogs play is not fully fenced and it’s the wrong size, said Gabby Miller, a spokesperson for the parks department. Sierra 2 also lacks the double-fence gates that help prevent dogs from scampering out onto the street.
Fields meant for youth sports
The area is right next to a fenced-off children’s playground, which many dog park users see as a perk and which some human playground users see as a potential safety issue.
“It’s the safety concern that needs to be addressed,” Miller said, adding that the department has received an escalating number of complaints about the way the area is used over the past year.
“It’s hard: I called it a dog park, but it’s not,” she said. “The grass area that’s being used for dog training, it’s sports fields. It’s for soccer.”
The nearby Sierra 2 Center and Sierra Curtis Neighborhood Association, which operates out of the same park, has submitted “complaints about off-leash dogs in the park” to the city.
It’s a popular site, especially on summer evenings when dozens of people bring their pets to the park. Some of them lounge in lawn chairs as they watch the dogs, carrying drinks and gossiping with neighbors.
On Friday afternoon, Leann Holtsman had come to the park with Mark Holtsman, a human, and their four small dogs. The couple hangs out at the park two or three times a week, and Leann said the dog park has formed its own little community.
“It’s usually the same people that come out,” she said. “Everybody kind of knows everybody.”
Sierra 2 is clean, she and Mark said, and the two of them can bring their granddaughter to the adjacent playground while the dogs run around.
The four little Maltese mixes have a community there, too — their best friend from the park is a black dog named Maude who wasn’t there that afternoon. Maude notwithstanding, upon arrival, Cocco, Micah and Benji lurched out of the Holtsmans’ car toward the gate, caterwauling with joy. (Charlie, 16 and senile, was quieter in his enthusiasm.)
Sacramento dog owners: We vote
Leann and Mark said that if the rule change does go into effect, they’ll probably have to find another dog park. Mark said he’s watching the outcome, and it will be on his mind at the next election.
“I’ve told everybody here: I vote, I pay taxes,” he said. “If they can’t see the value this park has to the people that live around here, then we’ll find someone who does. Democracy.”
The city is putting out a survey to gauge what the community wants the park to become, and responses will be collected throughout December. Miller said the department has mostly heard complaints about safety, but also about barking, about whether humans would ever be able to use the soccer field, and “many, many issues of dog poop.”
Still, the Holtsmans could not understand why the city couldn’t just put up the proper type of fencing and make it a permanent dog park. Malin had the same question, though he theorized an answer:
“The signs are cheaper.”
This story was originally published November 29, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
