News Archive
At the Annual Meeting of Members on March 14, 2006, the following persons were elected to serve one year terms as Directors: Terry Anderlini, Teri Baxter, Debbie Bishop, Karen Bishop, Katherine Conrad, Bill Dreyfus, Joe Duffy, Tom Endres, Sylvia Hughes, Chris Keller, Pat McGovern,Pia McGovern, Jim Williams, Nickie Williams. The newly elected Board of Directors then convened and elected Officers to serve one year terms as follows: President: Katherine Conrad; Vice President: Tom Endres; Secretary: Chris Keller; Treasurer: Pat McGovern. The Board and the Association would like to thank Teri Baxter for her years of service since the founding of the Association as Treasurer. We appreciate her volunteering endless hours over this time in maintaining the financial records of the Association. We are sorry that personal and family time commitments require that she step aside (at least for the time being), but are thankful that she is remaining as one of our founding Directors.
President's Message
With the annual meeting close at hand, it's a good time to re-cap developments at the park in 2005. In 2005 the association used dues and donations to add about 8 tons of decomposed granite (the "golden" stuff) and 3500 square feet of sod to the park (click to see project photos). Maintaining the grass is a constant, and quite frankly, losing battle, but we believe the dogs and their park using humans appreciate the effort, and consider it a worthwhile expenditure of funds to keep as much grass as we can for sniffing, rolling and... well, you know. The RWC parks and rec team work mighty hard to keep all that grass green, a nearly impossible task given the existing drainage and soil conditions. We thank them for their efforts and giving us so much help in the installation and maintenance of the grass, and ask for everyone's patience when the grassy areas are closed off in wet weather to prevent more damage.
We want to remind our members, and park users, that we exist as a partner and resource to the City, in the maintenance and operation of this park. It is a unique partnership by which we are given the opportunity to influence the direction of the park and contribute to its improvement. In 2004 and 2005 we paid for and installed the new dog waste cans in the park, vastly improving the aesthetic quality of the park and reducing the "yuck" factor. We are now supplying the park with the dispenser type pick-up litter bags, reducing the need for user supplied grocery or newspaper plastic bags which often were found flying about in the wind. We are well on our way to the erection of a new shade structure in the big dog park, through the use of member funds, and in 2006 are also considering new benches in the small dog park and other improvements. Your suggestions are welcome.
Improvement projects, park supplies and maintenance are not possible without your membership dues and donations. So, please, continue to support the park you and your pooch use every day.
Thank you,
Pat McGovern
Shore Dogs President
A message from the Board about Park Rules and Enforcement
Shore Dogs Park is a great place to take your dogs and those who visit the park usually have a good experience. Occasionally, however, things don't go quite as smoothly and conflicts develop, between both the dogs and the people. We need your help in ensuring that the park remains a safe, fun place. Our rules are for the benefit of all park users and have, for the most part, been effectively self-enforced.
Recently, several factors, including a rising number of complaints about rules violations, has led to increased attention to the rules by City personnel, including the Police Department. As a city owned park, it is subject to the rules and regulations of all city parks, as well as those specific to this park. You may have noticed that the rules sign posted at the park entrance was recently changed to add a reference to the municipal code section under which the rules are issued. This was done to provide notice to park users that violations of the rules may result in the issuance of a citation by police or other city authorities. Police have stepped up their visibility at the park, especially during the mid-day hours when most of the rules violations have been reported, particularly involving the three-dog limit. We don't want to rely too heavily on the police department, or to be too great a burden on their resources, so we ask that everyone follow the rules and remind others to do the same. The police are an additional resource, however, when self-policing fails.
Many of you also know that we have occasionally had supplies (litter bags and trash can liners, etc.) stolen from the park. Recently, we have had notices posted by Board members taken down by unknown persons. For instance, the notices concerning the date and time of the December Holiday Party were removed, resulting in a situation where many park-goers didn't know about the party. We have also stopped stocking the boxes at the park with membership applications because they were being removed as quickly as we could stock them. Membership forms are now only accessible on this website.
With the help and cooperation of our members and park users, the vast majority of whom follow the rules, clean up after their dogs and contribute to the pleasant social environment at the park, Shore Dogs will continue to be a top-notch place for our four-legged friends to play. This park is for you and especially for your dogs, and the Board is committed to keeping it open, safe and friendly.
The Shore Dogs Association Board of Directors
Saturday, July 23, 2005 was a beautiful, sunny day for the 7th annual Radio Road Round-Up.
The dog park is an "off leash" area. If you need to keep your dog on leash, Shore Dogs' canine advisor recommends that, for your dog's own safety and comfort, you don't bring him or her into the park. It is not uncommon that aggressive problems occur with dog-to-dog interactions on leash or when one dog is leashed and others are not.
Also, please remember that this Redwood City park is a designated "Dog Park". It is not intended as a children's playground. Dogs in the park can and will often assume "natural canine behavior", which may not be a safe environment for small children. Shore Dogs Association recommends that you don't bring small children into the park. If you do, please watch them carefully.
The city, association, its board members and volunteers cannot be held responsible for any personal injury.
Another successful Radio Road Round-Up was held on July 26, 2003. Thanks again to all the sponsors, contributors and vendors for helping us raise money to support the Park at this 5th Annual event.
Recent repairs and improvements to the park included installation of nearly ninety tons of new dog friendly "Gold Dust" decomposed granite and several thousand square feet of new sod. With the use of the temporary fence, we hope to be able to keep the front portion of the park open year round and in all the weather. We are also continuing to investigate other improvements and amenities as our budget permits. Your continued support is appreciated!
Everyone had a great time at the Holiday Party on Sunday, December 8, 2002. A special thanks goes out to all of the sponsors for the Silent Auction.
Fun was had by all! Thanks to the sponsors, organizers, and participants Saturday, July 20, 2002 at the fourth annual Radio Road Roundup.
Please be extra careful of plastic bags flying away. Apparently, many are flying into the lagoon behind the park and have become a problem with the water pump to the levee.