Fairfax Dog Park
FAIRFAX TOWN COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING
WEDNESDAY, MAY 8, 2024
The Community wants a Dog Park!
The TC has at least twice in recent years been petitioned by residents to take up the issue of creating a dog park in Fairfax (at the July 12, 2017 and April 7, 2021 meetings).
Highly unscientific poll on Nextdoor:
Yes, I'd love a dog
park
67%
No, I actively
oppose this idea
18%
Don't care
either way
15%
Fairfax is the one of the few
incorporated cities / towns in Marin
that doesn’t have a dog park
San Rafael
Novato
Mill Valley
Larkspur
San Anselmo
Corte Madera
Sausalito
Tiburon
Belvedere
Ross
Fairfax
Life as a dog in Fairfax
It is prohibited to be off leash in Fairfax in all parks and on almost all road, sidewalks, trails, fire roads,
and open space.
The only place where dogs can legally be off leash is on the fire roads in the Loma Alta Preserve.
But these fire roads are shared with Hikers, Bikes, and Horses.
Fire roads are obviously unfenced and run through open space, so are exposed to wildlife like coyotes, mountain lions, and raptors.
Fairfax has excellent public recreational
facilities
(even though each one they may not be used by
100% of the residents, and some are decidedly niche!)
Examples in Fairfax:
Tennis courts
Bocce court
Basketball court
Playground / play structures for children
Skate park
Little league field
(Households with dog(s) are more numerous than all of these!) How many dogs live in Fairfax?
Marin Humane recommends using the
California Department of Food and Agriculture
(CDFA) Pet Ownership Calculator, which estimates
that:
38.40% of households in California own dog(s)
The average dog-owning household has 1.6 dogs
Per Nancy B McKenney, CEO/President of Marin Humane, only 25%-30% of the dog owning population, in general, license their dogs, so licensing statistics are of limited use. https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/AHFSS/Animal_Health/eprs/cares/preparedness_stats.html Fairfax Statistics
Households w/ dogs
(est.)
1401
38%
Households w/o dogs
(est.)
2,247
62%
8,729 Residents
7,149 Adults
1,580 Children
2,242 Dogs (est.)
3,648 Households
926 Households with child(ren)
2,722 Households without children
1,401 Households with dog(s) (est.)
2,247 Households without dogs (est.)
Population statistics from 2020 census. Dog statistics estimated from CDFA Pet Ownership Calculator. 0 1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
8,000
Adults Children Dogs
Households w/
children
926
25%
Households w/o children
2,722
75%
Funding and Resources
Resources needed for a dog park will depend on the location chosen E.g., will land be donated, leased, or purchased?
To preempt defeatism citing funding as an insurmountable challenge, here are some possibilities:
Donations
Volunteers
Fundraisers
Sponsorships
Use portion of dog license fees collected by Marin County (via Marin Humane) Town of Fairfax
Robert A • Cascades
“I would love to see a dog park here, I don't buy the argument that we, as a town, can only do one thing at a time.
[Having other] issues to solve does not mean we can't also have aspirational ideas like a Fairfax dog park. It is worthy of pursuit.
Maybe a Fairfax Dog Park nonprofit will get started, and then maybe someone wealthy who has a property will one day donate it for the tax write-off… and maybe a GoFundMe and a few
corporate sponsors will fund the nonprofit to build it out. And maybe the town bars will have a weekend fundraiser effort and maybe the town itself will contribute something…
The point is that it starts with people seeing the value of something (which most here do) and then thinking outside the box. I think there would be great value to a Dog Park in Fairfax… I should live so long!” Some possible
locations
* Not an exhaustive list. Not vetted for feasibility or cost willingness of owner to sell/lease/donate. Just some ideas I’ve collected by talking to residents and from my own
observations, to get the conversation started!
Field behind White Hill Middle School
Field behind White Hill Middle School
Deer Park Watershed
Deer Park Watershed
Across the creek from Tennis Courts
Across the creek from Tennis Courts
Marin Town & Country Club
Marin Town & Country Club
Wall Property
Next Steps
We request that you continue to
diligently work on this item until
either it comes to fruition, or the
Town Council formally votes not to
pursue it during this term.
We request that you ensure that
the issue doesn’t fade away with
no resolution, as with past petitions
on this topic.
If it’s found after a diligent effort
that there is currently no feasible
location, then at the very least,
keep this item in mind so if another
opportunity comes up to obtain
land, we take advantage of it!
Thank
you!