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Unleash the Beach in Santa Monica !
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Three
ways to help: RALLY and PHOTOS! On Saturday, July 31, 2004, we staged our first public demonstration of support for an off-leash dog area on Santa Monica Beach. Our rally was generously sponsored by Anthony Hitt's Westside Team, DBL Realtors Click here to see photos from the rally.
Our site and our project are a work in progress. As we grow, we'll be adding lots of useful information of especial interest to the pet owner/guardians in our community, and to animal lovers everywhere. Feel free to explore this site and our links, and contact us with your thoughts on building our sense of community with all living beings and improving the quality of our lives through our love of our dogs, our glorious coastline, and each other.
Unleash the Beach - Kickoff Press Release June 12, 2004
Our greatest hits:
The kickoff meeting of Unleash the Beach was held on Saturday, June 12, 2004 in the Community Room at Joslyn Park. Mayor pro tem Kevin McKeown attended and kindly expressed his support. What do the dogs have to say?
Documentation
& Notes: 1-
Olson, Betty, PhD, Senior Scientist -
Review of Results of a Limited Assessment of the Dog Zone, etc.
“Hence the dog zone may be no better than the restricted area (for
fecal coliforms), but it also appears to be no worse.” p. 3 and also
see Tech Report Table 3. “Differences
for both of these constituents (ammonia nitrogen and nitrate) between
the dog zone and restricted zone were not statistically significant.”
p. 4 There
were occasional tests that came in with detectable coliform numbers
(though on retest the numbers were normal), but the report the
scientists concluded: Olson - p.3 “ The reason may be the impact of
birds on the shoreline.” Peters,
Steve, Water Quality Specialist, County of Santa Cruz, “Two other
immediately recognizable sources are the rock that sea lions use and a
rock that is used by seabirds such as cormorants and seagulls.
Both are these sights are within a half-mile and up-current. Tetra
Tech Report p. 4 - “Animal waste sources can be less important from a
public health standpoint, because most animal pathogens do not cause
disease in humans.” “Dog
urine is considered to be sterile.” 2
Hester, Phil, Director of Parks, Recreation and Marine “Based
on Animal Control records, there has been no dog bite (to humans)
reported at the Dog Zone.” Hester
also noted that over the three month pilot, there were only a dozen
incidents at all reported where, say, a dog chased a jogger or crossed
the path. Given the number
of users, this is extraordinary. Positive
benefits such as the dramatic reduction of human waste and the attendant
bird waste from scavengers (both of which have been shown to transmit
disease) by dog beach volunteer clean-ups actually improve a beach.
Other benefits, such as personal safety from human malfeasance
when dogs are present, should not be forgotten when weighing the total
impact of a dog beach. The factual nature of these reports reveals that the vehement rejection of the very idea of dog parks stems from an unreasonable fear of dogs. In this regard, the concern that aggressive dogs are a threat to people and other dogs, is unfounded, given that in all existing 59 dog beaches in the State of California, there have been no issues of liability to any municipalities or the state from dog issues. Moreover, if an altercation were to arise, which would be rare, it is taken care of among the dog guardians. Indeed, this is borne out by the experiences in the SM dog parks. |
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Working Dogs Deserve a Break in the Breakers! Who we are...Unleash the Beach is a grass-roots community organization which now encompasses Santa Monica Dog Owners Group. We are being represented by the law firm of Loeb and Loeb for our 501c3 filing. We are part of the Dog Beach Now Alliance, affiliated with like-minded organizations in our sister cities--FREEPLAY in Venice and PaliDog in Pacific Palisades. What we're about...There are more than 5,000 dog owner/guardians who choose to live near the ocean in the City of Santa Monica, California. In the belief that our dogs help us to be a community--to interact as friends and neighbors--our mission is to establish an off-leash dog zone on the beach where we can recreate and socialize together with our dogs. What are the issues?Read 10 "Mistaken Assumptions" and Facts about Dog Beaches. Some of our neighbors have expressed concerns, including questions about the impact on water quality, and since we're environmentalists, too, we're very serious about addressing that. But the fact is, studies of other dog-designated beaches elsewhere in California have shown that there are no adverse environmental impacts. Other legitimate concerns about the cleanliness and safety of dog-designated areas can be resolved based on real-world experience at existing off-leash zones. For example... Neighboring cities Long Beach and Huntington Beach already have highly successful, well attended dog beach areas--frequented every day of the year by responsible owner/guardians and their ecstatic canine friends. We appreciate having the support and wise counsel of successful advocates like Justin Rudd of Haute Dog in Long Beach and Martin Senat, President of Huntington Dog Beach. San Diego is noted for having four outstanding dog-designated areas, including an impressive expanse in Ocean Beach. San Francisco has no less than 13 such areas. Santa Barbara also has a wonderful stretch of beach where dogs can play. Until Haute Dog lobbied for and won the establishment of the Long Beach Dog Zone, Los Angeles County was the only coastal county in California without dog-designated areas on its beaches. We expect a portion of Dockweiler Beach in El Segundo to be open for off-leash, supervised dogs--all because of the diligent efforts of Daryl Barnett and FREEPLAY, assisted by our dear friend, the late Mike Gordon, former mayor of El Segundo and California State Assemblyman. We want to bring the same recreational amenity to a portion of Santa Monica Beach. Please contact us at Unleash the Beach to express your support (or your concerns). Please join us in supporting the establishment of a supervised off-leash area on Santa Monica Beach. Become an Angel Sponsor. Click here. And whatever your questions or concerns, feel free to contact us at Unleash the Beach.
Refutation of Supt. Ron Shafer's Arguments Against Dog BeachesApril
29, 2005 THE
FOLLOWING IS A RESPONSE FROM MEMBERS OF UNLEASH THE BEACH TO THE RON
SCHAFER LETTER DATED MARCH 8, 2005 TO ELAINE POLACHEK, CITY OF SANTA
MONICA. Mr.
Schafer’s letter asserts that the “California State Parks does not
support an off-leash dog area at Santa Monica Beach”.
To this we say, what of the Huntington Dog Beach, the Lighthouse
Dog Beach, the Point Isabel Dog Beach which are all on state lands and
allow off leash recreation. Why
is Santa Monica to be deprived of an amenity clearly enjoyed by
thousands of Californians in other regions?
Especially when we have organized a large group of responsible
dog owners/guardians (over 2500) who have been demonstrating for eleven
months that we are ready and willing to support this in every way. Mr.
Schafer states that his mission is to “protect natural and cultural
resources and provide opportunities for high quality outdoor recreation
that should not affect the resources nor the recreational experience of
others”. The Unleash The
Beach proposal for a well-monitored pilot program will do both.
We are environmentally concerned and have gone before the SM
Environmental Task Force three times.
Even though it was reviewed with
tough scrutiny, the proposal still succeeded in winning the
support of the overwhelming majority of the Task Force members. Susan Mearns’ proposal to support the dog beach pilot
program as long as we provide water monitoring, adequate bags and trash
receptacles, fiscal support and no significant impacts to any animal
life were considered fair and reasonable by the scientists and other
concerned environmentalists on the committee. Therefore,
we would like to address Mr. Schafer’s particular concerns as we had
researched and presented for our city representatives. First,
the snowy plover: He
mentions that Santa Monica State Beach is a habitat for this federally
listed threatened species. Current research shows that zero to 18 birds
have been observed wintering on our beaches between lifeguard stands 2
and 6 during the months of November through April. The
1996 National Park Service study of Ocean Beach in San Francisco
indicated disturbance of the Snowy Plover by humans and/or dogs occurred
when they approached within 50 feet of the plover.
We have seriously considered this factor and want to help protect
the Snowy Plover. As
evidence of this, it is important to note that the proposed location for
the dog beach is approximately ½ mile or approximately 5 city blocks
from the identified wintering site of the plover.
We are confident that the snowy plover will remain undisturbed by
dogs using the dog beach at the proposed location. Mr.
Shafer states that “dogs are considered predators by shorebirds
including western snowy plovers.” The current primary threats to the
Western Snowy Plover on our beaches include; people, crows, gulls,
shrikes, kite flying, fireworks, mechanized sand raking, and pollution
such as trash left on the beach. Crows,
ravens and shrikes are the natural predators of the Snowy Plover. No
current studies have found dogs to be predators of the Snowy Plover. Mr.
Schafer’s letter states that the effect of the dog beach on
“shorebirds…could result in an enormous fiscal and/or legal impact
to the City of Santa Monica. For
example at Oceano Dunes State Recreation Area, State Parks is required
by the federal and state regulatory agencies to create management
strategies that cost DPR approximately, [sic] $500,000 annually.”
It
is inappropriate and misleading to compare Oceano Dunes to the dog
beach. Oceano Dunes is
comprised of nearly 4,000 acres and 1,500 of those acres are open to
off-road vehicular traffic and camping.
Indeed, the DPR itself has stated that the “carrying
capacity” of Oceano Dunes is 4,300 off-road vehicles per day.
See Oceano Dunes State
Vehicular Recreation Area Status Report dated June 13, 2000.
Moreover, administration and management of Oceano Dunes requires
compliance with erosion control standards, staffed entrance kiosks,
placement of fencing along portions of the perimeter of the 4,000 acres
and around isolated vegetation “islands” and wetlands in the dunes,
revegetation of areas impacted by off-road vehicular traffic, removing
vehicular motor fluids contamination, conducting various impact studies
related to vehicular traffic and maintaining a retro photo baseline
archive. None of the
foregoing costs will be applicable to the dog park, which simply
involves allowing dogs off leash on 1/10 of a mile of beach, which area
will be maintained by our privately funded organization.
Accordingly, any reference to Oceano Dunes is irrelevant except
to reveal that Mr. Schafer’s letter is not wholly truthful. Next,
Mr. Schafer uses Huntington Dog Beach as a model to support his
arguments against a dog beach in Santa Monica, based on issues of
“public safety.” One of
our members drove to Huntington Beach and visited with the Community
Services Director, Ron Hagan. According
to him there has been a decrease in the number of calls for service from
police and marine safety responding to dog complaints.
Staff estimates that approximately 90 percent of the users of dog
beach obey the rules and regulations and are courteous to other beach
users. She also went to the
Huntington Beach Police Department and obtained a list of citations
given at Huntington Dog Beach from 12/06/03 to 4/06/05.
Out of the multitude of citations given, only two are directly
involving animals, one being cruelty to animals on 2/16/05 and the other
involving a dead animal on 3/06/04. This
research is backed up by the statements of Martin Senat, President and
Founder of the Huntington Dog Beach Preservation Society who states that
“their representatives are complimented by both lifeguards and
police” as they work closely with them.
Dog beach is “probably the cleanest one mile beach and water in
HB out of the 8 ½ mile stretch, and in our presentation to the
Commission and with expert advice, we showed evidence that the
environment is not affected.” Mr.
Schafer’s letter says “there is concern for the probable interaction
between dogs and stranded marine life.” We have contacted several
marine mammal rescue groups and all express similar sentiment to those
of Joe Cordaro of the National Marine Fisheries Services.
He said there is no objection to unleashed dogs on the beach, as
long as pet owners show responsibility to prevent interaction between
the dogs and a stranded sea lion or seal.
He agrees that our dog guardians could help educate pet owners
and could contact SM animal control in the event of a stranded marine
mammal. We could also
incorporate appropriate information in our signage and help educate the
public. Mr.
Schafer says, “Off leash dog use is viewed as a local recreational
need.” And yet pristine dog beaches like the one in Carmel, and also
Huntington Beach can supply statistics showing the improvement in
business as the cities are visited by dog enthusiasts from around the
state. We know we have a
very popular beach in summer. The
one tenth mile we are proposing is the least popular area as the parking
lot adjacent is never full, according to the manager of the adjoining
Perry’s Food Stand. We
would be willing to discuss possibly closing the beach on holidays and
maybe weekends in the summer. In
the winter months, the area is almost totally deserted now. We would be
enhancing the use of our natural resources. The
health and safety issues as they relate to dog feces and dog urine are
brought up in Mr. Schafer’s letter and also cited as objections by
Jonathan Bishop of the California Water Board, Walt Dougher of the Beach
Commission, and Alan Reed of Surfrider Foundation.
These concerns are often brought up and yet they are
unsubstantiated in the studies done at other dog beaches. The
literature is consistent on two points: Dog waste does not adversely impact the health conditions of beaches in any measurable way. In fact, the hypothesized objections to dog parks in worst case scenario projections (such as pollution, disease, risks of injury and bites) have been demonstrated by statistics to be nonexistent or, at most, on a par with the risks of other human activities in public places.1 Moreover, off-leash areas, as opposed to on-leash parks have even fewer incidents.2 Thank you for taking the time to look at the facts. We have spent many hours compiling these, and in addition to dozens of dog lovers who have helped research early on, the latest round of response has been particularly helped by the direct efforts of : Gary Cadish, Susan DeRende, Bruce Favish, Risa Freeman, Elaine Gervasi, Mary Hubbel, Alan Krugel, Ian Landgreen, Joy Oaks, and Georja Umano. |
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