VERO BEACH – Supporters of the nonprofit riverfront dog park got approval Tuesday to begin the first phase of improvements, but the City Council warned that the parking situation needs to improve by the time busy season starts.
Councilwoman Pilar Turner said she was concerned about the unofficial grassy parking area becoming a torn-up and sometimes muddy eyesore.
The dog park has still not constructed the 10 dedicated parking spaces prescribed in the site plan and lease with the city, so users of the park have been parking on the grass where there will soon be more prominent “No Parking” signs posted. Police officers will be encouraged to enforce those “No Parking” signs.
Councilman Dick Winger said he wasn’t wild about posting lots of prohibitive signs, “I love dogs more than grass, I’m sorry,” Winger said.
The gate nearest this ad hoc parking will also be closed during construction of the improvements, which will include two “rain gardens” to improve drainage on the site.
The terms of the lease require the dog park group to maintain the grounds and parking area so the facility would not become a burden to the city.
Mayor Jay Kramer noted that the dog park organizers will need to come back in six months, by early November, with progress. “The whole issue is to put pressure on them to complete Phase One. That’s the whole purpose,” Kramer said about the closing of the gate and the signs.
The Friends of the Vero Beach Dog Park group is still raising money for general maintenance and improvements, as many of the donations received are restricted for a purpose such as trees.
