Duboce Park Renovations Attempt to
Accommodate Both Children and Dogs
Improvements Include New Pedestrian Path, Off-leash Play Area

Dog owners (above) play with their pets under a cloudless sky at Duboce Park in front of a construction fence. A new path under construction (above left) skirts the northern edge of the park.

By Jaime San Felippo

After years of discussion and planning, construction has begun in Duboce Park on renovations that aim to fulfill the needs of dog owners, parents and everyone in between, by defining areas for usage and becoming the first legal off-leash dog park in San Francisco.

The first of three phases of construction commenced on Oct. 15 and concentrates on an off-leash dog play and multi-use area. Phase I includes a new north-south pedestrian path, widening of the existing east-west path from Steiner to Pierce streets, a bollard and cable fence, new drinking fountains for both dogs and people, new benches, irrigation modifications as well as drainage improvements and lawn restoration. New lighting will also be installed.

According to Marvin Yee, Recreation and Park Department landscape architect and project manager, the renovations are going as planned.

“It’s going more smoothly than I anticipated,” said Yee. “We’re making really good progress. This phase should be finished by January 9.”

Phase II is scheduled for Summer 2008 and will concentrate on improvements to the hill near the Muni stop and the people/children’s play area at the half-crescent shaped lawn next to the playground. Phase III will focus on a perimeter fence around the half-crescent area, but the need for the fence will be evaluated at the time of construction.

The cost of renovations in Duboce Park is slated to total $476,000, most of which has been secured by Supervisor Bevan Dufty, who sits on the Budget & Finance Committee.

The idea is to divide the 4.8-acre park into three areas: a dog play and multi-use area, where it will be legal for dogs to be off-leash; a neutral, middle area on the hill, where dogs will need to be kept on leash; and a people/children’s play area area where dogs will be prohibited altogether.
These renovations have been a long time coming.

While Duboce Park has been known as a dog park for as long as most can remember, tensions have been rising between dog owners and other park patrons, mostly parents, who felt the park had become dominated by canines.

Mark Scheuer, president of Friends of Duboce Park, said he was contacted in 2004 by community members who were concerned about the rising frictions in the park. He began getting constituents together to talk about the problem, including the Recreation and Park Department, Duboce Dogs, Duboce Triangle Neighborhood Association (DTNA) and community parents.

“Parents wanted an area for kids to be able to play without dogs running up to them or stepping in dog poop,” said Scheuer.

Supervisor Dufty had been contacted shortly after and he realized how passionate community members were about the park and making it welcoming for everyone. He set up a series of lengthy and sometimes contentious community meetings where everyone could talk about the problem and possible solutions.

David Troup, who founded Duboce Dogs when he and his dog, Chino, began using the park, was heavily involved in the community process. He attended weekly meetings where community members and city officials hammered out plans for the park that were eventually approved by Recreation and Park Department in January 2006.

“The main benefits for people with dogs is there will no longer be a cloud hanging over our heads,” said Troup. “The hope is that everyone will feel they have space in the park.”

Peter Cohen is on the board of DTNA and has also been involved in the planning stages as a parent. Living just a block away from the park, he brings his kids there as much as possible but noticed that the playground is really intended for smaller children. So when his 6-year-old boy wanted to play in the grass it felt restrained because of how much space was devoted to dogs.

“But it’s important to not make this a kids-versus-dogs issue because that’s a fake dichotomy,” said Cohen. “This is about maximizing the use of the park and people treating each other with respect.”

Cohen hopes the way the community has dealt with the problems in Duboce Park will serve as model for the “dog issue” in other San Francisco parks. Troup and Cohen continue to attend regular meetings with city officials to track and ensure the project’s progress.

Jennifer and Tyler Martiné live near by and say they hope the renovations will encourage people to stay in the city and raise families.

“I think they’re trying to encourage people with kids to be more comfortable in the park,” said Tyler as their golden retriever, Miles, fetched a frisbee. “Maybe if people feel comfortable staying in the city to raise families the city will start putting money into our public schools.”

These renovations come on the heels of the opening of the Scott Street Labyrinth in April of this year, San Francisco’s first labyrinth in a public park. The Harvey Milk Center for Recreational Arts is also currently being seismically retrofitted and renovated.

“Duboce Park is a little oasis in an urban neighborhood,” Supervisor Dufty said. “The investments we make in the park now will benefit everyone who use it for years to come.”

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