Public ownership of dog park a bad idea

As anyone who has read this blog knows by now, I am a dog owner and a dog lover. I have two crazy mutts — Rosie and Sophie — and have had dogs for about 25 years. They are like family.

I also think dog parks can be great for some dog owners (my dogs, however, might not do so well — Rosie is not very friendly to other dogs).

This brings me to South Brunswick’s proposed purchase of a private dog park in the Little Rocky Hill section of town. The plan, which gets a final vote on Tuesday, calls for the council to

purchase the privately owned Rocky Top Dog Park, 4106 Route 27, for $360,000, which would come out of the open space fund.

”The plan is to try and generate revenue so the park pays for itself with maintenance, but also to replenish the Open Space Trust Fund,” said Ron Schmalz, public affairs coordinator.

The 5.75-acre dog park currently generates between $60,000 to $90,000 in revenue each year, Mr. Schmalz said.

The plan appears to have majority support — only Republican John O’Sullivan voted against it — because council members view it as a revenue-generator that would increase the money available for future open space purchases.

But, as Frank Chrinko, a former member of the Township Committee and a longtime gadfly in town, writes in this letter, it is a dangerous gamble and “does not meet the test of an essential municipal function.”

And that seems key to me. I am not a small-goverment conservative. I believe government has a role in providing for our well-being, and I don’t see how getting into the dog park business does this. This is the kind of spending we should be targeting — as with the governor’s proposal on the horse-racing industry. A dog park is not essential any more than state-subsidized horse racing or a sports stadium.

Let a private firm buy Rocky Top if it wants.

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Author: hankkalet

Hank Kalet is a poet and freelance journalist. He is the economic needs reporter for NJ Spotlight, teaches journalism at Rutgers University and writing at Middlesex County College and Brookdale Community College. He writes a semi-monthly column for the Progressive Populist. He is a lifelong fan of the New York Mets and New York Knicks, drinks too much coffee and attends as many Bruce Springsteen concerts as his meager finances will allow. He lives in South Brunswick with his wife Annie. View all posts by hankkalet