Summerland – The Town where dogs should not be seen or heard

I am Incredulous! I could not believe my eyes or ears. It seems that the “Downward Dog” has new meaning and potency this morning in our little town. Summerland council said NO to making the pop-up Peach Orchard dog park permanent. Citing significant neighbour and resident objection, council will seek alternate locations for a permanent park, looking for that elusive solution, a location that will please everyone and annoy no one. Well good luck with that. (Howz the pool referendum shaping up I wonder?)

Coun. Adrienne Betts hopes the “feedback will change” with a different location. Twenty bucks says it won’t. Quoted in Castanet, Coun. Richard Barkwill said there is no perfect spot, especially in Summerland, for the park. “You’re always gonna get some complaints. I think the complaints are legitimate but overstated,” he said. “If we’re gonna have a dog park at all, this is where.”

Coun. Doug Pattan agreed with Barkwill that they have looked at many municipal and publicly owned properties over the years. “I feel the positives for utilizing this area for the dogs outweigh any negative comments that have been received as there is no other public amenity that has seen this level of outstanding support from Summerland in recent times.”

So what is going on here? I just left the dog park this morning where approximately twenty dogs and as many owners romped and played together (the dogs I mean), with a few barks, jumps, and stolen balls, all using the full length and breadth of the park. Owners agree that this is a marvellous way to start the day. In hotter weather dogs cool off at the beach. In colder weather they take refuge under stately trees. Owners sit at one of two tables or sit on the grass, visiting, meeting together, making connections, often welcoming visitors from the campground only minutes away. There is ample parking outside the fully accessible playground. The space is rarely if ever used—not exactly what developers call the “highest and best possible use.”

Back to alternate locations. Are you seriously suggesting we move the facility around the community? Three locations, each operating for say, six months, means three times the number of complainants, and less support from us owners. If not multiple locations, single locations you suggest include Snow Avenue—well that’s near a sports field—those poor children “exposed” to possibly their own dogs. The Lutherans, well they have already said no—do Lutherans not like dogs? Tell that to the Schnauzer who lives next door. Hey, what about Bentley Road, buried in the industrial area? Oh, right—that might distract workers who will be required to collect growing piles of poop. NOT.

Hoping that my bark is less sharp than my bite, I continue my doggerel. What is your problem with dogs people? Why must our four-footed friends be kept our of sight and sound, or at the very least nowhere near where we live? Of course, not all are dog owners, or dog lovers. Some may have had negative experiences with dogs or dog owners. I get that—I have had many less-than-stellar experiences with human neighbours over the years. For a snapshot of absolute joy click here for some Saturday Morning fun. Does this mean that dogs and dog owners must be banished to the outskirts of our little town. The implications for branding are not good.

• Summerland—Where dogs are neither seen nor heard.
• Downward Dog Summerland
• Doggonit, Summerland—What are you thinking?.

You choose.