River Park

Friends of River Park Connects With The City of Calgary

/ riverparkoffleash - Leadership Team

 

IMG_4243

Construction and development is in full swing at River Park. Since May, park users have raised many questions. Kathleen and Candice, members from the Friends of River Park leadership team connected with two representatives from The City of Calgary, the Project Manager and a Parks Community Strategist.

View details of the meeting on July 26, 2016.

Advertisement

Poop Scoop Day Results

/ riverparkoffleash - Leadership Team

A little cold weather couldn’t deter dog people from showing River Park some TLC on Saturday, November 14.  Drum roll please…

Yay! There were 31 people who gave up an hour and a half to pick up leftover poop and bits of garbage. Some of our regulars dug in with pails and shovels while others preferred to just use bags. A few people who have never encountered our group efforts, learned about the park culture, grabbed a bag and picked up too!

This time we concentrated on the east side where the grass is longer and just as we suspected, helpers reported finding a few too many piles.

Thanks to everyone for doo-ing more than your share to give River Park the care it deserves. It’s great to scoop before the snow is here to stay.

 

 

The River Park Fountain and Memorial Site

/ riverparkoffleash - Leadership Team

fountainAren’t we lucky to have a water fountain for people and dogs at River Park? It’s one of the great features that sets this off-leash area apart from others.

A bit of history… a water fountain first arrived at River Park in 2007 as part of a memorial site dedicated to Cathryn Margetts. Cat was the owner of one of the first known commercial dog walking/sitting services in Calgary. This remarkable woman tragically lost her life when she tried to save animals trapped inside her burning home. Cat’s family and friends organized three benches, trees and the fountain in the middle of River Park as a wonderful tribute to her. It is known as ‘Cat’s Park Within a Park’ and is one of the treasured focal points at River Park, drawing many locals and visitors year round. Please click here to learn more about Cat (includes link to her former  dog business).

The stone fountain was custom-made at the request of Cat’s family and friends. It was a gorgeous, unique park feature that dogs and people enjoyed immensely.  Unfortunately the fountain lasted less than one year. During its first winter it crumbled away from the elements and accumulation of urine from dogs. Candice Lee from the River Park Dogs leadership team reported this sad news to Cat’s family and The City of Calgary.

In 2008 it was replaced with an identical fountain but it quickly showed signs of deterioration as a result of the same reasons. Candice monitored and documented the decline. One day, she found the fountain had been vandalized. A large chunk from the front of the dog bowl was found lying just a few steps away from the fountain. Once again, she contacted Cat’s family to report the additional bad news.

Cat’s family set in motion the steps to find a suitable replacement, and shortly thereafter in 2010, a metal fountain was installed.

The metal fountain has stood up much better than its predecessors but in 2015, after five years, urine has taken its toll on the paint. At some point the access panel will need to be replaced.

How can you help?
Well we can’t do much about the weather. Members of the River Park Dogs leadership team cover the fountain during the winter. You can do your part during fair weather months. Here are some of the great ways to help:

Curb Behaviour
Don’t let your dog pee on the fountain. Often dogs urinate in the bowl and some dogs  lick the surface.

Safety & Consideration
Ensure healthy, pleasant experiences for people and dogs. Urine creates a strong odour and is unhygienic. 

Preservation
Reduce repair and prevent need for replacement. Urine strips the paint. Currently a large patch of paint on the access panel to the fountain has deteriorated from dog urine. Please note: When a replacement is required, it would be our fourth fountain. We have to be realistic and not assume we can even get one.

Respect
Honour this memorial site. It’s the right thing to do.

fountain

The Rules of Off-leash Parks

/ riverparkoffleash - Leadership Team

In general, dogs and owners must follow the Responsible Pet Ownership Rules set out by The City of Calgary Animal and Bylaw Services. Here’s a quick summary that applies to us when we use the park:

  • Dogs must be licensed as of 3 months old
  • Dogs must be under control (even in off-leash areas) and capable of responding to voice, sound or sight commands (fines range from $50 to $100).
  • Owners and caregivers must have in their possession the suitable means to pick up their dogs faeces.
  • Owners and caregivers must pick up (fines range from $150 to $250).
  • The owner and caregiver must ensure a dog doesn’t bark, howl or make other noises that disturb people.
  • Chasing pedestrians, cyclists or vehicles (fines range from $50 to $200).
  • Causing damage or injury to another animal (fines range from $100 to $250).
  • Causing injuries to people (fines range from $100 to $1500).
  • Causing death to another animal (fines range from $500 to $1000).
  • Dogs must be on leash in parking lots.

Next River Park Clean Up

/ riverparkoffleash - Leadership Team

TBA – September 2016

Why? For the love of River Park and our pooches.

Please come dressed for the weather and bring your choice of gloves/bags or a pail/shovel. We’ll pick up poop, garbage, cigarette butts and whatever else doesn’t belong in the park.

There’ll be volunteer sign up sheets at a table near the south end of River Park by the parking lot or with Candice who will be wearing her blue volunteer vest.

This event is weather-dependent. If it snows we’ll postpone. Watch for more details on the website or through our Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Hope to see you there!