Title
Establishing a Dog Park at Odana School Park.
Body
Dog Park Proposal at Odana School Park
DESCRIPTION:
Parks Division Staff is proposing the creation of a fenced off-leash dog exercise area at Odana School Park located on the West Side of Madison. The dog park would be slightly over 1 acre in size. The dog park would be designed to current Parks Division standards, including a completely enclosed fenced area and a double gated entry system. This dog park would be an addition to our existing off-leash dog park program and would require a permit to utilize. Madison Park Rangers would enforce and collect fees on a daily basis at the site. Madison Residents and Parks Staff have identified a need for west side dog park locations. Attached is a map showing the existing dog park areas that participate in the collaborative dog park program and the primary range of people they serve. This includes the City of Madison, Dane County, City of Middleton, and City of Sun Prairie. The map of existing dog park service areas shows a service area deficiency on the West Side.
Parks staff are currently evaluating multiple options for dog parks to service the West Side of Madison in addition to the site at Odana School Park. Due to the size of the proposed dog park, we consider this to be a "neighborhood dog park" and not a "destination dog park" like many of the larger dog parks within the system. We do not anticipate that residents will drive to this location from a distance when there are many other larger options to drive to. We expect that much of the use will be from walking traffic to the park. A new dog park would become part of the collaborative dog park system. The design, permitted usage, rules and regulations would be the same as our other dog parks. City of Madison Traffic Engineering Dept. was contacted to evaluate the site based on the anticipated traffic flow to the park, they did not see any issues with traffic flow. Based on other dog parks in the system, the traffic and dog parks is random throughout the day, not like a soccer game that draws large numbers of vehicles to an area at the same time. This park does have an attached parking area.
PROCESS:
Attached is a flow chart used for the creation of a dog park site. Parks staff have evaluated the site, had opportunities for public input, and are recommending approval for this usage to the Board of Parks Commissioners. Parks staff have also evaluated locations at Walnut Grove Park, Garner Park, Elver Park, Mineral Point Landfill, Greentree Landfill, Odana Hills Park, Quarry Park, and Westmorland Park, some have been eliminated for various reasons. Notification and support was received from Alder Paul Skidmore regarding the Walnut Grove project. We utilized the Neighborhood Associations and direct mailing to notify residents of the meetings and survey process. The following schedule represents a list of the public input process for this location.
October 17, 2012 West Side Dog Park Meeting at Meadowridge Library
March 26, 2013 Presentation at Midvale Heights Neighborhood Association
March 25 - April 15, 2013 Conducted Survey regarding proposal at Odana School Park
April 25, 2013 Public Meeting at Odana School Park
FUNDING:
The project will be fully funded with existing dog park permit revenues held in a segregated revenue account and will not rely on tax levy support. All revenues collected from sale of dog park permits and daily passes are utilized for maintenance, supplies, and expansion of the dog park program. The construction of the dog park will be conducted using a combination of City staff resources and contractors selected using appropriate City of Madison competitive bidding processes.
ATTACHED MATERIALS:
Site Map of Proposed Location
Map of Existing Dog Parks and their Service Areas
Dog Park Planning Flow Chart
Former Alder Support Letter
Dog Park Survey Results
Midvale Heights Association Support Letter
Email Input