The fight to move the Tega Cay Look Out Park Dog Park (The Central Bark) continues. Homeowners most affected by the current dog park location are asking for your help.If you don’t know the story, a team of homeowners on Newberry Lane challenged the city of Tega Cay a year and a half ago. The homeowners were fed up with the dog park that is located next to their homes because of;

dogs barking all hours of the day, dogs running loose outside the park, dogs left in the park by their owners, safety concerns with their children, environmental concerns, etc.

Finally last February the city council announced they found a new location for the dog park but would not commit to close the current location even when the new dog park opened. It seems some of the dog park users have organized as a group and challenged the closing of the dog park.

Ironically in past city meetings an over whelming majority of Tega Cay residents voiced their opinions in public discussion sessions and agreed they would not want a dog park located next to their home. The Newberry Lane Tega Cay residents need your help. They have created a petition that simply states “as residents of Tega Cay we feel that a dog park should not be located in or near a residential area.” You can contact one of the organizers of the petition and sign the petition or better yet there is a blog and electronic version the petition that takes seconds to complete.

So would you want the dog park located next to your home? If not help your Tega Cay neighbors by signing their petition!

Petition Blog Address is tcdogpark.blogspot.com

Or a direct link to the petition form

Or email Jerry Hires, Kerry Arnold

Kerry Arnold who lives on Newberry Lane near the dog park wrote a detailed comment to my post titled “Does Tega Cay Need 2 Dog Parks?”  I thought her comment was worth a post rather than just a comment to another post. Here is what Kerry wrote.

Thank you Scott for your take on the meeting. I think we are all still in disbelief and shock from what came out of the meeting last night. It has always been everyones understanding that the Dog Park would be moved/relocated, never a second one added? Hopefully the residents of Tega Cay/Newberry Lane have been put off for the last time . (more info to come)

First some members of council said the current park couldn’t close bc there was no place to move the park-locations were researched and presented bringing on the “not in my backyard meeting”.

The next meeting was started with “there is no money to move the park” (do note that that was not ever mentioned before-just the opposite and I quote “you find a place and we’ll move it”.

Now after 14 months of talking about this, City Council is presented with a WIN WIN plan: a park in a non residential area, NO COST to the city to be moved/installed-road, parking and fenced in park, and we find ourself still w/o a closing date for the park on Newberry Ln. What happened here?

I expect an even stronger turn out at the next meeting and actions to take place long before before that date even arrives.

Big town politics just hit us in small town Tega Cay. What is left to believe in when the dogs are more important then the safety of our children and the quality of life of the city residents? Thanks for listening.

Kerry Arnold

Your comments are welcomed below.

Tega Cay Newberry Lane residents that have been fighting to move the Lookout Park Dog Park named the Central Bark (ironic isn’t it?) away from their homes were dealt a crushing blow last night at the Tega Cay’s City Council meeting. It was announced last night that a new dog park will be built near the new Catawba Park. It could take 30 plus days to complete. Good news for Newberry Lane resident’s right?

The council voted unanimously to wait 60 days, maintain the operating hours of the current location, then reevaluate the current dog park status after 60 days even after the new dog park opens in Catawba Park. Kerry Arnold during the public discussion portion of the motion quickly got to the point and asked whether the Look Out Park Dog Park will ever close. Mayor Runde’s said the council was not sure at this time or they may reduce the hours of operation dramatically.

Council Member Larry Harper was quick to throw a second motion on the table to close the current dog park once the new Catawba Park dog park opens. Council Member Les Connor 2nd the motion. The motion was quickly killed by Mayor Runde, George Sheppard, and John Dervay.

So, what happened? In my observation the council seemed to have agreed in past meetings to move the dog park. Most agreed the dog park should not be located near a residential location. Why did George, John, and Mayor Runde hesitate to commit to close the current park once the new park is operational? Did a few people who complained about the new Catawba location being too far change their opinion? Does Tega Cay need 2 dog parks? Should Tega Cay tax payers pay for the operation and maintenance of 2 dog parks?

I was taken back by the council’s actions last night. Here are my comments about the current dog park:

• The dog park in its current location near homes is an eye sore and a nuisance.
• It affects the resale value of the Newberry resident’s homes. The park may have been on the plans to build before the homes on Newberry were built but the fact is the homes were built before the dog park was built. So most of the Newberry Lane home owners never knew the park would be built when they purchased their homes.
• The dog park user’s claim the surrounding homes dogs make all of the noise. The local dogs bark because they see and smell visiting dogs at the park. The local dogs would have one less reason to bark without the dog park located where it is.
• The park breeds and attracts traffic and potential safety problems.
• Two thirds of the residents that took part in the January public discussions said I like having a dog park in Tega Cay but not next to me. I remember several of the dog park users agreed with this discussion point too.

By the way I found this forum on city-data.com. It’s about someone suggesting to an area newbie taking their dogs to swim next to the Tega Cay dog park. The next response is from a dog owner who has taken his 2 dogs swimming at the dog park but complained his dog’s paws were cut on the Asiatic clams near the shore. Ironically I heard one the dog park users say in the council public discussion session last month dogs are always kept in the fenced dog park area and they never see dogs off the leash outside of the dog park except for the dogs that live on Newberry lane.

No one seems to be promoting to get rid of the dog park but just relocate it away from homes. The council has spent several days and hours on this issue and I predict several more based on the decisions they made last night. Would you want a “Central Bark” dog park next to or near your home? Your comments are always welcome in the post comment section below. What are your observations and opinions?