To the editor:
It is not only very sad to see that a very small percentage of residents in West Kelowna can direct how our tax dollars are being spent, but also very unfair.
The only dog beach in West Kelowna is in the process of being stripped of its grassy bench. It is being fenced off, leaving a narrow strip of muddy beach, dirt and gravel and some dangerously exposed cut-off stumps of shrubs and bushes, severely restricting the area where our dogs could run.
Some people using the pathway which is cutting through the off-leash dog beach area, have been offended because some wet puppies came too close.
Dog owners are tax payers too. They also pay licence fees and are being fined, just like motor vehicle owners on the highway.
And just like motorists having safe roads, dog owners should demand a fair deal for appropriate facilities as well. Some of the moneys from licence fees and fines should be allocated to maintain and improve existing facilities and to create new ones as the need arises.
Muddy areas and bark mulch-covered fields just won’t do. We need grass fields for our dogs—with table/benches for their families—to enjoy.
Parks will have to be kept clean and owners should be fined $100 to 150 for not cooperating in a responsible manner, or for bringing bad mannered dogs to fields, whatever the breed, large or small.
The dog beach in West Kelowna could easily be left without the fence. With little extra cost, the pathway for general public could be led off the dog beach to the level of the newly improved Gelatly roadway and back down to the Rotary Beach with the family and parking area.
Without offending people’s rights and concerns, we surely can resolve problems in cooperation, and with respect for one-another.
Helmut Dotti,
West Kelowna
