As of January, 2002, the City now has a leash law which requires that dogs be on a leash and under control in all city parks, except for inside the fenced off-leash area at Azalea Park, and for certain designated portions of the Rivanna Greenbelt Trail only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.  Pay attention to the signs! This time-sharing option is being provided on a 6 month trial basis; successful compliance will determine whether time-sharing will be extended beyond that time.  Violations of the City leash law are a Class 4 Misdemeanor.

Darden Towe Park, although jointly funded by the City, is a County park governed by County regulations.  Dogs must be on leash and under control in Darden Towe except for inside the newly created fenced off-leash area located about 200 feet east of the picnic shelter.  (The picnic shelter is located at the north end of the upper parking lot.)

Remember, since 2001 the City also has a law requiring cleanup of dog feces -- look for the plastic poop bag dispensers/waste containers in the parks.  Failure to clean up after a dog in your care is a Class 4 misdemeanor.

See the actual ordinance for the new Leash Law.
 

July 13, 2001 -- The leash law ordinance for the City of Charlottesville is NOT on City Council's agenda through the end of August 2001.

Charlottesville City Council met on Monday June 4 to discuss passing a comprehensive leash law for the entire city. A vote was not taken on a leash law at that time. 

The City's Public Works Department presented the following three documents at the June 4th City Council meeting:

• Dog Park "Information" 
• "Research" Findings: Dog Issues in the Parks and School Sites 
• Staff Recommendation: Dog Issues in the Parks and School Sites 

We strongly urge all persons living in the City of Charlottesville who wish to preserve the privilege of walking their dogs off-leash to write to City Council to voice their opposition to the proposed leash law. All five members of City Council can be reached at the following e-mail address: coxj@charlottesville.org

The following statement was drafted by members of Charlottesville's Parks & Recreation Advisory Board and presented at City Council's meeting on Tuesday, February 20, 2001.

Dogs and Parks

Charlottesville Parks & Recreation Board's
List of Options

(February 2001)

After months of discussion and consultation with Pat Plocek, Judy Mueller, Woolen Mills neighborhood residents, and several dog owners, the Charlottesville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board has put together several options for consideration by City Council concerning dogs and the City parks. We must stress that these are just options to be discussed, not recommendations, at least not yet. The Board views this as an opportunity to work out a compromise between City residents on both sides of this issue.

Let's begin with Azalea. The dog owners have asked that the current dog run be extended and for lights to be installed for evening use during the fall and winter. Pat Plocek has inspected several parcels of land at Azalea where we could add some land for a mini dog run. Judy Mueller has looked into the pricing for lights. And so far the estimated cost for the lighting is rather expensive, but we are exploring ways to bring it down. These would be small directional lights (similar to the lights at Washington Park's parking lot) on a timer that would shut off at 8:00 p.m. We still need to have additional input from the Fry's Spring neighborhood, and any addition of lights at the park must go through the Planning Commission's site review process.

At Riverview Park we are considering several locations for the construction of a dog run and the placement a sign at the beginning of the trail easement to notify users of its private property status. Dog owners have also suggested lights at Riverview. However there is intense opposition from the neighborhood concerning both lights and a dog run.

There have also been suggestions made concerning other possible dog runs. Woolen Mills residents have suggested a piece of land in front of the Rivanna Water Sewer Authority near Franklin Street. This is in the County and we are investigating who owns the property. A Parks and Recreation Board member suggested studying the possibility of utilizing a portion of land on Moore's Creek that is adjacent to and east of Quarry Park. Another piece of land is at Darden-Towe Park right behind the softball field near the Rivanna River. There is ample land here for a nice sized dog run. This will have to go through the Darden-Towe Committee for approval. The locations and configurations of these dog run areas (and other possible locations) would most likely be temporary pending future master planning of these parks and the overall park system. 

The Parks and Recreation Board believes that a more extensive "Dog Park" would be a valuable community resource, however the City is limited by a lack of land in its current parks or ones which are slated for expansion and or renovation. Therefore, the City should work closely with Albemarle County and dog walkers to consider future construction of a regional Dog Park that would adequately serve the dog lovers of our shared community.

And finally there have been requests from numerous City residents for an ordinance that would require all dogs, outside of dog runs, to be on a leash and within control of their owner at all City Parks, school grounds and dedicated easements along the Green Belt Trail. A leash ordinance for the Parks should become in effect only after funding for dog exercise areas is approved.

Charlottesville Mayor Blake Caravati has invited local dog owners to bring their dogs one at a time to his house to play with his dog, Bella, in his fenced-in back yard. Mayor Caravati apparently made this highly unusual offer in response to citizen complaints about lack of public park space in which dogs can be safely exercised off-leash. Mayor Caravati lives at 1108 Little High Street (near Meade Park). He may be reached by telephone at 296-9636 or through e-mail at caravati@cstone.net.

Our Statement to the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board 

(June 28, 2000)

The Response of the City's Parks & Recreation Advisory Board 

(July 16, 2000)

Please let us know about any news or upcoming events that would be of general interest to dog owners in Central Virginia and we will be glad to include them in this space. You can reach us by e-mail at jgr9a@cstone.net .