Monthly Meeting
February 1, 2010
Attendees:
- John Sankey, President
- Peter Brimacombe, Secretary
- Fred McLennan
- Gisèle Loiselle-Branch, Membership
- Peter Foulger
- Jerry Beausoleil
- Nichole Hoover-Bienasz, Assistant to the Councillor
- Christine Hartig, Policy Officer, Emergency & Protective Services
- Sheena Bolton, The News
- Sarah Brimacombe
- Suzanne Lapointe
- Reinerio Recarid
- Ann MacKenzie
- Al Alvares
Motion: To approve last month’s minutes, moved by Jerry Beausoleil, seconded by Fred McLennan, carried.
Sarah Brimacombe: Her daughter goes to Bayview Public School and they have had problems with dogs off leash. She called the bylaw officer to complain and was told over the phone that action would be taken. In one incident, there was a rottweiler running loose through the play structure in Owl Park. She and her daughter felt threatened. She confronted the owner and he told her to “mind your own business”. In another incident a dog was jumping up on the children. The owner said that his dog was deaf and so he could not control it. The children of Bayview and Holy Family Schools feel threatened by dogs but the parents don’t know that Owl Park is an off-leash dog park. When did it become an off-leash dog park? She has contacted both school councils and will present the problem at their meetings.
Jerry Beausoleil: What have been the problems?
Sarah Brimacombe: A girl in 4th grade at Holy Family fell in some dog poop in the morning and it was on her all day long.
John Sankey: Most dog owners are responsible.
Sarah Brimacombe: There were two doberman pinschers who ran through the play structures. The mothers who were watching their children felt threatened. Dogs should not be the priority, children should.
Christine Hartig: She is a Policy Officer with the City Emergency and Protective Services Department. Owl Park has been an off-leash dog park for as long as she can remember, having worked in old Ottawa starting in 1987. There is a process to re-designate the rules for dogs in parks. There are a number of conditions by which the City will consider a re-designation. One of them is a petition signed by 25 residents who live within 500 meters of the park. Consultation would have to be undertaken, in accordance with the Council-approved policy. Since amalgamation in 2001, there have only been 11 complaints with respect to dogs in Owl Park. Although the school principals had no particular concerns with respect to off-leash dogs in the park, they mentioned that failure to stoop-and-scoop is an issue from time to time.
Peter Brimacombe: There should be no dogs in Owl Park because there are no fences between it and the two schools. In the Park itself there are play structures, a wading pool, a tennis courts and a skating rink. Out of control dogs interfere with the enjoyment of these facilities.
Sarah Brimacombe: The City of Ottawa, through the Hunt Club Community Centre, in the summer runs day camps at the Park but parents are not warned about free-running dogs.
John Sankey: He and his three grand-children are afraid to walk in the Southern Corridor because of big aggressive dogs. (The Southern Corridor is owned by the NCC.) Dog poop is a health risk to children.
Motion: To distribute a flyer to the dog owners using Owl Park and to the parents with children at Owl Park. The flyer would advise the parents that the Park is an off-leash dog park and it would advise the dog owners that they must scoop the poop, they must keep dogs 5 meters away from the play structures, and they must keep dogs under control particularly when kids are around. The flyer would also be sent to the schools for distribution to the parents of the children at the two schools. Moved by Jerry Beausoleil, seconded by John Sankey, carried.
Christine Hartig: She will check what signs are posted in the Park and step up bylaw patrols. There should be signs saying that dogs are not allowed within 5 meters of the play structures nor the wading pool.
John Sankey: He understood that Mike Nihmey was to present a proposal on traffic calming but he didn’t appear.
Suzanne Lapointe: She has contacted her neighbours concerning Mike Nihmey’s most recent proposals to reduce traffic past his house. She would like to thank Frank and Val Hallman for going door-to-door on her end of the street. Since 1999, Mike Nihmey has constantly proposed measures to reduce the traffic past his house. His proposals are impractical and tiring.
Ann MacKenzie: She spoke supporting Suzanne Lapointe.
Reinerio Recarid: He spoke supporting Suzanne Lapointe.
Amy Tan: She sent an e-mail on behalf of residents of 3384 McCarthy Road stating their objections to Mike Nihmey’s proposal.
Nichole Hoover: Presented the Councillor’s Report.
Jerry Beausoleil: He commended Maria McRae for her work on the pedestrian bridge to connect Hunt Club to the Transitway.
Motion: To send Maria McRae and Nichole Hoover a letter thanking them for their good effort in securing funding for the bridge. Moved by Jerry Beausoleil, seconded by Peter Brimacombe, carried.
Gisèle Loiselle-Branch: The late Bill Royds was instrumental in promoting the Poets’ Path.
Jerry Beausoleil: A Hampton Inn will be built at 2869 Gibford Drive. The Inn will be on the south side of Hunt Club Road and some residents on the north side were concerned. The residents and the architect have met and resolved their issues. Access to Hunt Club Road will be indirect and no new traffic lights will be needed.
Next meeting: Monday, March 1 at 19:30
