Dogs and People in Boston

Published on February 2017 | Categories: Documents | Downloads: 40 | Comments: 0 | Views: 207
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Dogs and People By ADM 660 words No clear consensus was reached last Tuesday night on how to resolve tensions at the 11 Phillips Street Park. Dog owners and abutters are at odds over how best to control noise at the park, which disturbs neighbors and has led to shouting matches and unneighborly conduct. The meeting was organized by John Shea, Phillips Street, who wanted to bring people together to discuss the issues at hand and work toward a resolution. Despite efforts and those of several others, it is unclear whether Tuesday's meeting will have any impact on conduct at the park. Those in attendance build a consensus on whether most of the noise was coming from people or dogs in the park. The meeting featured presentations Bernie Lynch of the Parks Department and Animal Control Officer Sgt. Rudak. Lynch outlined what the Parks Department could do to maintain and improve the condition of the park, and Rudak discussed how his department can control problems such as unleashed dogs and dogs who incessantly bark. Rudak said that although the Animal Control department has the authority to fine owners of unlicensed, or unleashed dogs and dogs who bark for more than five minutes, his office prefers to educate dog owners. Rudak he says that once he or his officers notify people that they can be fined, and that they should use "common sense," the pet owners tend to comply with the law. Rudak advised abutters of the park to call 911 or municipal police if the noise in the park is disorderly. He also said that people making a ruckus in the park after 11:30 P.M. can be charged with disturbing the peace and trespassing. After Rudak's presentation, Shea facilitated an open discussion between abutters and dog owners. Shea sought comment on a petition to lock the park at some time in the evening and lock it open in the early morning hours. Shea stressed that the actual hours to open and close the part could be determined. Resident Joel Pierce suggested that the park be locked at 11:30 P.M. and reopened at 6 A.M., which would restrict usage of the park to its legal hours of operation. At first, this notion engendered some support. But soon after, many residents objected to the notion of ever locking the park. Nigel Hernandez, a dog owner who uses the park but does not abut it, said, "If you lock the park, you are restricting a person's quality of life. Locking it serves no purpose." Others argued that there would be no guarantee that the volunteer who should open and close the park would show up on time. Phyllis Brown said that locking the park would cause fewer people to visit it, and that could have unintended consequences for the neighborhood. After describing how the park used to attract heroin addicts (and sometimes still does), she said "When you do anything that decreases public usage of the park, you're going to have an element you don't want." Most agreed that they would rather have barking and malodorous dogs than heroin addicts in the park. Residents also implored dog owners to pick up after their dogs. Many described the smell in the park as "unbearable", especially during hot summer months. Others asked that the Parks Department provide a better hose and drainage system so that volunteers could clean the park at will. Shea said he was pleased with the outcome of the meeting. He said that if nothing else, the meeting provided an opportunity for neighbors to educate each other and air their feelings about the park. "The more people know, the more they have a reason to be considerate," Shea said. Shea said he hopes that as the issue gathers more attention, people will act more compassionately toward each other.

In the meantime, the Parks Department has cleaned the park and posted new signage which clearly explain the rules for having dogs in the park. Originally appeared in the Beacon Hill Times

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