This morning I attended a meeting with residents who had asked that I listen to their request for an Off-Leash Dog Area at Rifle Range Beach (southern end of Bargara). This was an informal gathering and not part of any formal Council consultation process.
I had expected about half a dozen people to turn up and was pleasantly surprised to see well over a hundred residents and a couple of dozen dogs waiting for me when I arrived.
Council’s Animal Control Officers have been active in the area enforcing the relevant by-laws which has resulted in a number of infringement notices being issued and this has no doubt sparked the re-newed interest in this location being gazetted for off-leash activities.
The group requested that Council designates a timed Off-Leash Area on the beach between the hours of 4.00pm and 8.00am to formalise their historical practise of late afternoon and early morning walks and activities which appears to be as much of a community networking exercise as it is a fun time for their dogs.
I have to say that the sense of community spirit and responsible dog ownership on display was fantastic to see. Comments and suggestions were all valuable and it was obvious that many in attendance had researched the subject and were able to provide the number of off-leash facilities provided by many other Councils.
The residents have asked me to host an online petition on this site so that they can indicate to the Council their level of support. There was also discussion about an online survey form however I think that it would be more appropriate for this to be conducted by the Council if and when it goes down the track of formal community consultation.
The principle petitioner is Christine Rodwell who can be contacted at voicesforchange@live.com.
YOU CAN SIGN THE PETITION HERE
