First published in the April 9 print issue of the Glendale News Press.
Officials will seek a design firm to work up a proposal for a dog park after the City Council identified a Colorado Boulevard parking lot as its preferred location for the new amenity.
The council approved the location on Tuesday and agreed to allocate up to $350,000 to engage a design firm for the project. The property, located across the street from Central Park and the future Armenian American Museum, emerged from three proposed locations for the dog park, which will be Glendale’s first.
Mayor Ardy Kassakhian, as a councilman, had requested the city explore developing its own dog park last year, particularly advocating for it to be placed in south Glendale on account of its density and relative lack of open recreational space.
Though there is a dog park within city limits, in Crescenta Highlands, it is managed by the county and is relatively separated from most of the city.
Otherwise, residents have the options of the newer Eagle Rock dog park or the comparatively perfunctory Griffith Park dog park, each owned by the city of Los Angeles — and both requiring a freeway trek.
“We do have a lot of pet owners in some of the densest parts” of the city, Kassakhian said Tuesday.
The proposed location is currently a metered parking lot, located between the Glendale Elks Lodge and the U.S. Army National Guard Armory building. The long and narrow lot is about half an acre and will need new lighting and irrigation infrastructure installed. (Kassakhian also expressed an interest in acquiring the armory building property, should the federal government choose to offload it.)
The lot, formally called City Parking Lot 11, was the clear favorite during a community outreach meeting held in January, earning 25 votes from attendees who felt its location — in the vicinity of large apartment complexes in the downtown and south Glendale neighborhoods, where there aren’t as many parks — made the most sense.
Another proposed location, in part of the existing Pelanconi Park, earned just three votes, with feedback expressing concern about losing a portion of an open park and bringing in a dog park across the street from single-family homes.
A third proposed location, in a large lot owned by Glendale Community College, garnered no endorsements at all, likely because the park would have been temporary — the college plans to construct a parking garage there within the next several years.
Still, councilmembers harbored concerns about the parking lot location, especially given that patrons who aren’t walking from a local home would need to park elsewhere and likely cross Colorado Street to get there.
“I know that Colorado’s like a thoroughfare,” Councilwoman Paula Devine said, suggesting a dedicated crosswalk directly to the future park be built. “I’m just thinking that if someone tries to cross in the middle, it could be a disaster.”
Likewise, Councilman Dan Brotman was concerned about the journey to access the park and about when its attendees would need to turn back around if they needed to use a restroom, located at Central Park.
A public parking garage, with the first 90 minutes free and validation options available, is across from Glendale Central Library.
“So, you’re parking on the other side of Harvard, you have to cross Harvard, you have to walk all the way through, past the library and then you have to cross Colorado,” Brotman said. “I’m just wondering, are people really going to do that? It’s a little challenging.”
