City untangles park leash law issues

The city’s attempt to revise leash laws in public parks has pitted neighbor against neighbor in a north Sarasota neighborhood.

In May, the City Commission directed staff to move ahead with plans for a new ordinance regarding pets in city parks. Dogs are currently allowed off leash in most city parks, but the new regulations would mandate leashes — with a few exceptions.

The city identified Sapphire Shores Park as one of those exceptions. Residents in the Indian Beach/Sapphire Shores neighborhood told the commission their park functions well as-is, and that there was no need to require leashes.

The commission agreed, suggesting that Indian Beach/Sapphire Shores would serve as a model for other neighborhoods that wanted their park to be exempt from the leash law. Now, however, city staff is discovering there isn’t unanimous support for the existing regulations in Sapphire Shores Park.

On May 17, residents Ann Sundberg and Rolf Hanson wrote a letter to the city expressing concern about the possible leash law exemption. The letter says some residents — including some dog owners — find the current situation in the park intimidating.

“The status quo is not working when our neighbors avoid walking their dogs in the park because so many dogs are off leash,” the letter states. “The status quo is not working when the children’s area has dogs running through the bushes or through the wide open entrance because dogs are off leash.”

The letter suggests the city should have a more stringent standard for establishing leash-free areas. Either the city should erect a fenced area for dogs to run free, or the residents who support an exemption from the leash law should have to obtain proof of more widespread neighborhood acceptance of the idea.

Assistant City Attorney John Shamsey said other Indian Beach/Sapphire Shores residents have shared a similar sentiment. As a result, the city has delayed discussion of a final version of the leash ordinance until July, so those concerns can be addressed in the document.

City staff and the Parks, Recreation and Environmental Protection Advisory Board originally suggested a leash ordinance with fewer exceptions, only allowing dogs off leash in fenced dog parks. Shamsey suggested returning to that concept was an option the city could consider, rather than trying to tailor regulations to individual parks.

“The initial plan was to make the dogs on leash the default,” Shamsey said.