Wyndham council has reviewed the city’s off-lead dog walking areas, which, it’s proposed, will lead to the scrapping of three sites, the introduction of four new ones and changes to the parameters of five others.
Wyndham councillor Peter Maynard said the council was now seeking the views of the public, who have until May 27 to have their say.
That will be followed by a three-month transition period before the new arrangement is applied.
“Taking the family dog to a park where it can run without a leash is a great way to keep it happy and healthy,” Cr Maynard said.
“It’s something important to dog owners throughout Wyndham. Giving our residents more options when it comes to getting outdoors and being active with their pets is an excellent initiative.”
Fellow Wyndham councillor Marie Brittan said she was surprised that one of the existing dog off-lead areas, Cambridge Reserve in Hoppers Crossing, would remain unchanged.
She believed it should be scrapped as an off-lead area because of its playground and the number of children who walk through the reserve to get to and from school.
Cr Brittan also criticised signage at the reserve which states “dog off lead area begins 150m”, saying it caused confusion among users, who could not tell where the “imaginary dotted line” between on-lead and off-lead areas was.
She said signage should be placed at the start of the off-lead area to clarify the different zones.
“Our by-laws have to be black and white to be enforceable.”
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