Proposal Plan

Since the majority of dog owners in Bay Ridge do not use the dog run, is it possible to have a general Bay Ridge dog forum? Let's talk about dogs in our neighborhood. Many dog owners do not go to the dog park because they have little dogs and the park is not suitable for them. Or is Bayridgebarks.org only for the folks who use the dog run? I see a lot of dogs running loose and playing in the baseball fields early in the morning. These owners are not interested in the dog run at Owl's Head Park. But perhaps they would like to talk about their dogs or dogs in general.

I had Sammy Sanchez's lung capacity tested and his voice doesn't carry to the co-op, but I'd be happy to muzzle him for safety reasons if nothing else.

Personally, I don't see any credence to vague reports of disgruntled co-opers, but I'd apply the logic that city crews can start a jackhammer up at 8 a.m. so dogs are entitled to play then also.

Steve, your bullet points sound good.

One thing to address, and this gets back to Bethann's point, is that as many voices should be heard initially, to decide what we want this dog run to be, and be inclusive. Consensus is vital.

Physically meeting sounds like a good idea. But we still need to let others know.

Can Beth (are you the same person as Bethann?) make another sign for the trees in the dog run? Then we could also make these into 4x6 cards to hand out to other dog owners who use the run at different times or to dog owners on the street who don't use the dog run.

We could point them to the meeting place or to this website.

Kind of advertise and recruit for our organization....

One additional thing to think about is what are the consequences of becoming organized. (e.g. if we are not a group, then who would the co-op or parks department complain to?) What responsibilities might come with our organization?

I'd be happy to pitch in for printing costs if there are any.

I think we should either do a written proposal or inquire in person with the Land Use Committee representative. Either way, perhaps a formal written gathering of what it is we all want and what we're willing to do for it might be productive. It is frustrating to be on land that is considered "temporary" or "tolerated," because that's how it ends up feeling. Any step towards obtaining a commitment for use of the land would be beneficial, and it would be great to have a unified voice.

I think we need to have a two headed approach to this.

First, we need to come up with ideas for funding a new fence at our current location. Perhaps a walk-a-thon to raise money? One of the local high schools has a track that we may be able to use. Would anyone be interested in that?

We also need to come up with ideas and suggestions on what we would like to see should we get moved to near the skate park. I for one would love to see some permanent benches that the kids can't smash and maybe even a water fountain, or water access of some kind for the dogs.

~Jenny, Reggie and Bruno