Opposition to dog park stops idea in its tracks

By Gloria I. Wang

In response to a Los Gatos Parks Commission proposal to construct a dog park at Belgatos Park, more than 100 opponents of the proposal petitioned and wrote to the town.

As a result, the commission decided to drop the idea and table the dog park altogether until a better location is found. Proponents, however, are unhappy with the decision and say the process was unbalanced.

Diane Blum and Veronica Presedo-Floyd, who first proposed the park, say they were unaware the issue would be discussed at the Jan. 8 parks commission meeting and even more surprised when commissioners voted to table the idea. According to Blum and Presedo-Floyd, supporters of the park were never given a chance to voice their opinions.

"It's just very disappointing because I thought that we were moving forward," Presedo-Floyd, a Los Gatos resident, said. "I feel like it wasn't given a chance. We were just stunned, shocked."

On the other hand, town officials say everything was done properly. Parks Commissioner April Maiten says the dog park had been on the agenda, which was available to the public the week prior to the meeting. Also, Blum and Presedo-Floyd did not speak in favor of the proposal at that meeting, which she says was surprising. "They didn't let us know that they wanted to continue no matter what," Maiten said. She added: "It was just overwhelming opposition from the community."

"I think that all the right rules were followed," said John Curtis, director of parks and public works.

In March, Blum and Presedo-Floyd presented the "Unchained Love Project" to the parks commission. The response was generally positive; however, commissioners believed there were several issues that had to be addressed and appointed a subcommittee for the dog park. Committee members included Maiten, Blum, Presedo-Floyd and other commissioners, as well as town staff.

Curtis says the parks commission expected to hear a report from the subcommittee at its Jan. 8 meeting.

The subcommittee never did meet, however. Blum says she had a hard time trying to schedule a time when people could get together.

Maiten contacted Presedo-Floyd Jan. 7 to tell her how much negative feedback there was to the proposal and to ask if she and Blum wanted to persevere with the idea. If so, Maiten said, they could request a continuance from the parks commission to answer the opposing views.

Presedo-Floyd then discussed the matter with Blum. The two decided to see the opposition's reasons and then decide whether to proceed with a subcommittee. Both attended the Jan. 8 meeting, where "the intent was not to speak but to listen," Blum said.

At the meeting, the commission was presented with a petition with more than 71 signatures and more than 40 letters and emails, stating a concern with the wildlife, traffic and other issues that a dog park at Belgatos would potentially cause.

Based on the amount of opposition, commissioners voted to table the proposal. What it came down to, Maiten says, was that the commission would not recommend approval to the town council simply because so many people were against it.

"We have a town council that listens to the people, and they would not have approved something that so many people are opposed to," Maiten said. "So it would be spinning our wheels and spinning their wheels."

According to Blum, she was never asked to produce the letters of support that she had received from the community. "If it was a numbers issue to begin with, we could've provided that," Blum said. Blum says she had spoken with "hundreds" of people who had supported the park. "I have much more support for it than they have against it," Blum said.

"It's kind of a shame that the people in this one subdivision get to control what happens in these 17 acres," Presedo-Floyd said.

Tabling the proposal, Curtis says, means the commission will not actively pursue the idea unless someone from the community brings up another, more plausible location.

According to Maiten, Blum and Presedo-Floyd's proposal is the latest of several dog park ideas that have come before the commission through the years, which indicates support for a dog park in the community. However, Maiten said, "Every time it's like, nobody wants it in their backyard, so where can we have it?"

Blum says the situation was handled "unfairly and unjustly," and wants to see the subcommittee reinstated with new representatives from the parks commission.

"It's not over yet," Blum said. "Los Gatos means 'the cats' but we've got to have a place for dogs, too."

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