Boise Off Leash Area Info

Jamie Koole

Patti Murphy

Jerry Tracy

Julie Morgan

Donald May

John Rigby

Erik Kingston

Linda Watkins

Meeting Minutes: January Meeting Minutes Approved.

Packet: Portland’s Dog Task Force Recommendations, Idaho Statues 
(Title 36: Chapter 16), Recommendation for adding an off leash area 
donation check box to Boise City dog license renewals (Linda), Military 
Reserve Recommendations (Erik), dog web site listing (Donald), Phoenix Report
 (2 copies circulating), Reserves Master Plan (2 copies circulating).

Mission/Goal of Task Force: Decision of the task force mission statement 
tabled until next month.

Dog Challenge: Patti Murphy and her sister have discussed the possibility of
 bringing the Purina’s Dog Chow Incredible Dog Challenge to the Boise Valley 
for a possible fund-raiser. Patti will further research what is needed to host such 
an event and what a reasonable time line is for Purina. A list of different events 
and TV air times are listed on the following web sites: carsonevents.com & purina.com (dog chow). Purina was looking at the possibility of the River Festival and the task force 
also recommended fall, corresponding to dog shows. The task force discussed 
possible sponsorship, corporations that may want to be involved, admission
 charges for such an event, etc.

License Fees: Linda researched the possibility of having a check box option
 at the bottom of dog license renewal forms for specified dollar amounts 
($1, $5, $10, etc.) All money earned through this program would go into an
 account at Boise Parks & Recreation for off leash areas in Boise. The city clerks
 office felt this could be done on a trial basis.

Ground Cover: Erik has been working with BPR staff and Public Works to 
determine what may be the best variety of ground cover for the Temporary 
Military Reserve Off-Leash Area. His research provided the following:

Crown Vetch may become to thick and trip people and hinder flood control.

Native grasses would probably be the most logical.

Boise Parks & Recreation will be seeding the temporary off leash area with 
native grasses. BPR will seed the entire area and will be fencing off the back 
half of the park to allow grass to grow better in this area. The back half of the
 park will be closed for approximately two months while the grass establishes. 
There is no irrigation in this park, so it will be an experiment to see how this works 
with no water and the amount of traffic on the turf. Signage will be put at the 
site to let people know what is taking place and to please stay out of the area. 
Media will also be contacted.

Safety and Legal Questions: What is the liability for people with their dogs or 
children in the off leash area? People will assume liability for their actions as
 well as their pet(s) and/or minor children(s) actions. BPR will not charge for the 
use of this facility, therefore is not liable for actions occurring upon the site. This 
is stated in State of Idaho Statute 36-1604. Issues have been discovered in 
other off leash areas that some small dogs have been injured by larger dogs
 trying to play. Many cities have solved this problem by designating a separate 
area for smaller dogs within the off leash area.

Military Reserve Trail Access: Two copies of the Reserves Master Plan were 
distributed. Due to the length of the documents, Linda and Erik will review 
the master plan and report back to the task force their findings and points 
of interest to the task force.

Demographics: The City Clerks Office has a list of citizens that license their dogs. 
This list can be sorted by zip code. This information will allow the group to better 
determine where there are higher needs for dog off leash areas based on dog 
owner population. The availability of this information (printed copy/electronic 
copy) and how it can be categorized when obtained is being researched.

Speakers: Task force member John Rigby discussed specifics about the off leash 
area being created in partnership with FIDO, Ada County and Eagle City.

The off leash area is 9 acres in size and the park is located off of Horseshoe 
Bend Road, on Goose Creek Road.

The site will include: Pond for retriever training and irrigation purposes

Large natural area

6 foot fence around entire park

Air locked parking

Amphitheater

Low level lighting

Area for herding practices/events

FIDO is beginning to raise money to develop the area which has already 
been approved by County Planning and Zoning.

Possible Sites: Several sites have been located by BPR Staff and the Board 
of Park & Recreation Commissioners for dog off leash areas. They include the
 Bowler site in Southeast Boise, Temporary Military Reserve Site in North Boise, 
Site in Southwest Boise, and to look at the site the County is creating. The task
 force identified these sites on the Park Plan Map and will be visiting these sites
 in the near future.

Arizona Report: A report located by Donald was given to John & Jerry to read 
and report back to the task force.

Enforcement: BPR is looking at a possible park ranger with enforcement 
capabilities. The task force discussed how enforcement of leash laws by the 
parks department would affect their mission. The task force was very supportive 
of a park ranger to enforce all park rules. BPR staff will continue to research the 
issue and report to the task force of any moves forward. It was also discussed 
to locate police dispatch numbers on park signage.

Scoop Ordinance: BPR has been researching other cities ordinances. Most cities 
have an ordinance, punishable by fine, for people who do not pick up after 
their pets. The task force discussed the issue and would like to pursue education
 rather than a new law, however, if education isn’t effective they would be 
interested in pursuing a pick up ordinance. Task force discussed the possibility 
of educating neighborhood associations on pick up and general park ettiquette,
 also a type of adopt-a-park program.