Waimanalo chews on off-leash dog park idea

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer

WAIMANALO — Sen. Fred Hemmings is proposing to build an off-leash dog park on the beach of "Sherwood Forest" where pets can frolic in the water, but some residents are raising concerns about safety and health.

Petitions for and against the project are circulating in Waimanalo.

Some people may support a fenced area but they don't want dogs on the beach, said Andrew Jamila Jr., a Waimanalo Neighborhood Board member.

Jamila said a petition opposing the project was circulated at the neighborhood board meeting Monday night and at least 80 people signed it, including himself.

Objections were raised over safety and health issues, Jamila said. Having dogs off leash and in the water raised sanitary concerns about urine and feces in the water and sand where children play, he said.

"Some of the kupuna are thinking that is not good," he said. "They also predicted a lot of people will bring their fighting pit bulls. These people are thinking they're going to bring their $1,000 Pekinese dog and I don't think it will look good in the mouth of a 100-pound pit bull."

But Hemmings said experiences at other dog parks show that most dog owners who use off-leash parks are responsible for their animals.

"In San Diego, where they have a dog beach, liability is not a problem, safety is not a problem," Hemmings said. "People who love their dogs enough to load them up in a car and take them somewhere are people who are pretty responsible dog owners."

Wayne Duarte, a Waimanalo kennel owner, conceded that there are people who might bring an aggressive pit bull to the park but that is not a reason to kill the idea.

"It's like a playground for kids," Duarte said. "You have the school bully who comes in and all the kids stop playing, and when he's not there everybody is having a good time."

Some pit bulls, like other aggressive dogs, can't be trusted in an off-leash park, but many of them are OK, Duarte said. Owners have to know their breed and act responsibly, he said.

Hemmings said if the park is approved, a private citizen has offered to pay to fence in the area. The area would be partitioned so small and large dogs could be separated, he said, adding that he envisions the dog park as an expanded use at the beach.

"Sherwood Forest is greatly underutilized and eventually I'd like to see a cultural facility, permanent farmers' market and display area for local artists," Hemmings said. "So I'm hoping this will be part of a larger effort to create a culturally rich Waimanalo."

O'ahu has four dog parks: on Diamond Head Road; at the Hawaiian Humane Society; Moanalua Community Park off Pu'uloa Road; and in Mililani Mauka next to the park-and-ride.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.