HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-07-20 (Regular) Meeting Minutes•
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1. Call to Ordar
ENGLEWOOD crrv COUNCIL
ENGLEWOOD, ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO
Regular St11lon
July 20, 2009
The regular meeti ng of the Englewood City Council was called to order by Mayor Woodward at 7:44 p.m.
2 . lnvocaUon
The Invocation was given by Council Member Mccaslin .
3. Pledge of Alleglanco
The Pledge of Nleglance was led by Council Member McCaslln.
4. Roll Call
Present
Absent:
Council Members Jefferson , Moore , Penn , Oakley, Mccaslin, Wi!sor;
Woodward
None
A quorum was presen t.
Nso present City Manager Sears
City Attom&y Brotzman
l,ac~\y City Manager Flaherty
City Cla rk Ellis
Deputy City Clerk Bush
Director Black , Pa rk s and Recreation
Director Kahm , Public Works
Dirl!CtOr White , Community Development
Manager of Recreation Hultberg
Pol ice Commander Concil8~Y
5. Con1ideratlon of Minutes of Previous Snalon
(a) COUNCIL MEMBER MOORE MOVED, AND COUNCIL MEMBER PENN SECONDED, TO
APPROVE THE MINUTES OF 1 HE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF JULY&, 2009 .
Mayor Woodward asked if there were any correcti ons or mod ifications . There ware none .
Vote resultl :
Motion carried .
Ayes : Cou nci l Members Penn , McCaslin , Moore , WOOdward , Jefferson ,
Wilson , Oakley
Nays : Nona
6. RocognlUon of Scheduled Public Comment
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Mayor Woodward said I sea that there are quite a few people signed up to address City Council regard inq off-
leash dog concems In our parks . As you know, staff made a presentation on this subject at tonight's Study
Session , and th ere was discussion by Counci l. We have also received Input from citizens through a variety of
com,spondenca . That correspondence will be incorporated Into the record of tonight's meeting . We want to
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 2
make sure everyone who wants to be heard gets the opportun ity . We do welcome your input about Issues of
concern In Englewood . With that said , we have found that it's helpful if one or two people give us a clear and
concise presentation of the iss ue , rather than hav ing several people repeat the exact same message . With that
as a bas is. we can move on to the additional presentations by the other speakers add ing new information .
Something like ... I agree with the other presentat ions ... or simply I agree with the presentations made by ... is
encouraged . We know that you are concerned about the parks . So are we . We respect that you came to share
your input this evening and w, ask that you display that same respect for eac h other . We'd ask that you not
applaud individual speakers . We want to get to thd heart of the matter. While we understand that the issues ,
and even the fact that you are presenting in a public forum , can be an emot ional expe;;ence , we need to
address the facts and want to ,:ome to a fair and just conclusion . A respectful and reasoned presentation will
help us do that. Please limit your presentation to ten minutes . A ten minute limit to an individual and it cannot
be ass igned to another. At the conclusion of the presentations , Council will move on to the remainder of the
Ag enda . Coun cil concludes its meetings with indiv id ual Council comments . At that lime, Co uncil will be free to
let you know th eir thoughts , if they so choose . I will also be asking Council how they wish to proceed at that
point.
(a ) Martha Griego , an Englewood res ident , sa id good evening . I was he re June 1 • regard ing Jason
Park ... to give the children and our families back the park , because of the safety Issues and dog waste that is
be ing left behind from dog owners . After hearing the Council 's opin ions of the pa rk ... to put a fence around the
children, I knew the pictures and my situat io n were not going to be enough to support dogs be ing on-leashes at
all times . Thank you , Mr. Oakley , for recognizing tha t the children a•e not the animals . I contacted two
indiv iduals from Centennial Park who all had compla ints regarding the ir park . We both found that the residents
of Englewood have had enough of the dogs taking over the park and most of the owners not being responsible
for their pets . I read prev ious comments that were sent to Council to keep Englewood parks unleashed . I must
say , I was appalled by what I read . I will read t > give you some of the ir comments : "These people have noth ing
better to do than complain about our dogs ; people are ex ot1 91::1r;1ting about dogs runnin~ up to them : people
need to share the park , that is what it 's there fo r. since we ar able to take our dogs ,o the park , they are now
be ing used ; that would be someth ing , if only the children can be on a leash instead of the dogs , hehe: th is is a
social gathering for all dogs and the ir owners and if you take ,,,is away , we will have nothing : cion't mak e a
mistake and close the park due to 3 few crank y individuals , us,i your common sense and keep it open ; damage
is not being done by having dogs run around , it Is the h•,mans : we have never seen dogs threaten anyon e at the
park : The dog park is too dirty and it stinks " ... and the list goes on and on . The Denver Post wrote that "Mayor
Bradsha w was for the unleashed dog park . She Is beginning to hear complaints from ne ighbors at Jas on Park
where she has personally been confronted by aggressive canines . We didn 't know that th is was going to
happen ·. Kim Love, Pres ident of Englewood Unleashed , a dog organ ization , came to my home and wanted to
work on the problems with the park and wanted to kno w about the petition and what people were saying about
the park . He did mention that he is aware there are dog owners who are not responsible and shared a story
about a dog owner not want ing to pick up afte r his dog . The person sa id it was the City 's job to pick it up . After
the th ird time of asking this person to pick up the waste , Kim called the police and the person was cited for this .
It shows that the dog organization also had a problem with a dog owner not being responsible and havin g to file
a complaint. When Kim was asked , why can 't the people get to the dog park that was built for the ir dogs by
Englewood . he indicated that Englewood did not pay for the pa rk, but th at the Englewood Unleashed dog
organizatio n pa id for the park , for th e Bellev iew Park . The organ iz ation had many fundraisers and that is how
the park was built , not by Englewood . I was surprised to hear that the org anization had pai d for the park . I
recently contacted Parks and Rec to find the history of who paid for the dog park . The residents of Englewood
paid around S109,000 .00 for studies , water lines , flood plans , construction and many other th ings . The
Englewood Unleashed organization did pay for some trees , woodchips, benches and signage , but that's it. I
would like to make this clear to the Englewood Unleashed dog organ ization that you asked for a dog park and
Englewood, in fact , pa id for i', built it and now the majority of you choose not to use it. The President of
Englewood Unleashed is from Highlands Ranch and yut he is pushing Englewood Council to keep Englewood
parks unleashed . Does that make any sense to the Council that he lives two cities away and only comes here
to use the park for his pets? While the residents of Englewood reside here In the com mun ity and woulo like to
use th is park for the ir pleasures , but instead we have lo do it with the uncerta int ies of the ir dogs and waste they
leave behind . I have walked the neighborhood to have a pe ti tion signed . I was am :.zed that all I had to say was
·we are getting a petition signed to have all dogs be on-leash ". And wi th no hesitation the people grabbed the
cl ipboard from me . Wh ile signing , they were telling me the ir stories or problems that had occurred at the par k
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
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and they we re tired ~I it. I personally only had four people who declined the petition , so that says a lot. The
people of the community were willing to help out and get signatures as well as film the park activities . Much
gratitude to everyone that took the time , out of your busy schedule , to help out in this matter. The stories and
problems that were told to me while the petition was being signed , were overwhelming . They matched the
comp laints that have been read to Council for the past two years or so . The recent complaints were : from dogs
snatching their food during their lunch hour , dogs taking food from kids , dogs barking at them , dogs growling ,
dogs in the pavilion , dogs in the playground , dogs not letting them out of their car, dog waste and urination all
over the park , kids stepping in poop or feel in the poop with the ir hands , toddler blankets having feces , dogs
attacking their dogs , it is just a social gathering for the owners , they don 't pay attention to their dogs., they sit in
their car while thei r dogs run arounr1 , and the worst is dogs drinking out of the drinking fountain . That one made
me sick to my stomach . I normally take our own water because of the germs around drinking fountains , but we
ran out of water so I let the grand babies drink out of the same drinking fountain that the dogs Jia . If I had
known , I would have never let them have a drink . I would have called it a day and walked ~ome . I was
disgusted when I found this out. How sick is that? I know a lot of dog owners ~elieve that a dog 's mouth is
cleaner than a humans , but let's think about it for a moment. They clean themselves with the ir tongue and then
to drink out of the fountain . Is that a clean and sanitary environment for any human? Put yourself in that same
situation of sharing the same drinking founta in with the dogs , how would you feel atJul it? Do you think a State
inspector would like to hear about this inc ident? I have made a copy for Council to take into consideration some
fact findings from the July issue of Parks and Recreation . Testing dog waste ... it does indicate that dogs
investigate with their noses and their chances are greater to lead to oral fecal contamination . There is a lot
more to read in this article, so please read it. Another fact... "When Animals Attack ", aired Tuesday June 23 , it
stated , "wild animal attacks are rare ". Most people who are attacked by animals are attacked by pets ... dogs .
According to the Humane Society of Orange County , California , there are more than 4. 7 million dog attacks in
the US every year , mostly of children . You will hear from Tracy who will give you more information on what she
has regarding these dogs and children . I don 't know what else to tell the Council to make you understand how
unsafe and unsanitary the parks are with the dogs running loose . Are you all waiting for someone to get bit?
Are you waiting for a lawsuit? This is one of the busiest parks in Englewood with everyone playing T-ball,
volleyball , soccer, picnics or just to come out and play . Yet we have to watch where we walk and watch out for
dogs instead of enjoying the park and what it has to offer. We used to see people walk the park , go jogging and
we don 't see that anymore . Even some daycare residents won 't take the kids to the park anymore . They said it
was too dangerous now . People are going elsewhere because the park is turning into a dog park . That is what
I had to do . When I retired , I wanted to have my party at Jason Park . But with all the problems I've had there , I
chose to go outside of Englewood . I had to pay another city to use the ir park . I didn't have to deal with dogs
wanting our food , stepping in dog waste nor having dogs go after the children . It is pretty sad that I live a block
away from the park and I had to go somewhere else to be sure that my guests did not have to deal with the
same problems that we are dealing with now. We have more dogs now than we have ever had in the past two
years . One night I counted over 20 og s. EnQlewood spent money to build a dog park because the dog owners
requested a special dog park , for the ir ogs to run free and now they don 't want to use it. They say there is no
grass , it stinks , it's dirty and there is no wh c,e for the dogs to get water . Please ... they would rather have their
dogs drink out of our drinking fountains , make our grass turn into dirt and then our shrubs die and stink up the
people 's park . If I sound a little upset that is because I am . It doesn 't make any sense to build a park for the ir
dogs and then have them use the people 's park . There were a lot of dog owners who signed the petition and
sa id, there is a dog park down the street, that's what we paid for . Why don 't they use it? There is a big one on
Platt e Canyon and Bowles as well , why don 't they go back to their own city and dirty their parks ... and why dirty
ours? In closing , I am speaking on behalf of the residents of Englewood who could not be here tonight. We are
sick and tired of hav ing to compromise with the dogs and their owners . Unlike before , we are not going to deter
from this issue until they are resolved . Either you take every piece of playground equipment ou t of the park and
you tell the kids that you want ii to be a dog park and you must also fence the whole park and have the dog
people pay for the fencing ... not us taxpayers or you have the dog owners put a leash on every dog they bring to
the park . There should also be a limit to how many dogs they bring . I have seen up to 4 dogs per owner. We
are tired of putting our families at risk when we go to the park because of the aggressiveness that dogs show,
by barking and growling at us . We don't know if that particular dog is going to bite us or not and when the owner
can 't call his dog back , it makes it even more dangerous for us . We don 't want to wait two years like the
Bates/Logan Park decision . Why prolong this problem ? We all know what is best and safe for the residents and
their children of Englewood . We have a total of 281 petitioners that use Centennial and Jason Parks . They
have vol untaril y signed this petition that the y want Englewood park s to go back to ... all dogs must be on a leash
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
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at all times ... an~ Ne don 't want a fence . We don 't care how many unleashed dog me mbers there are . They are
nol from Eng le,,uod or a part of this community They don 't pa y our taxes and they don 't vote for you to be on
the Council. My opinion is that you do not need another Study Session to figure this problem out. You have
been through the same problem with Bates /Logan Park . Same issues regarding the dogs and the ir owners and
as of today . I am giving you the pet ition that the peop le helped sign to le t you know what they want. Make the
right decis ion for the people of Englewood and not worry about Denver , Littleton , and other surround in g citie s.
They can build the ir own dog parks in the ir own cities . And to the responsible dog owners , it is unfortunate that
there are man y Irresponsible dog Jwners who do not obey the rules of Englewood parks and have jeopardized
the pr ivileges that were given to you . I have noth ing aga inst dogs .
Council Member M~!,~ said Ms . Griego , your time is up . Than k you very much . I will try to be fa ir to everyone .
Thank you .
Ms. Griego as ked if she could turn in her petitions . The response was yes .
(b) Doug Cohn , an Englewood res ident , sa id I am a co-chair of the Englewood Days Comm ittee .
feel kind of nervous tonight. Usually I come and holler at you about some kind of a policy dispute or some
decision that I th ink you made that was incorrect. And I'm not even talking about dogs tonight. I missed the
memo on that one . I want to give you an update on Englewood Days , where we stand and what we need to do
at th is point. Englewood Days is 5 weeks away . The planning has been going on for 9 months . The
Englewood Days Committee and the Chamber has been working really hard to get things put together. I bel ieve
that you have a note in your packe t, a summary about various requests we have . I will let you look that over at
your le isure . A couple of summary points : the Chamber is putting on the event , if you give us permiss ion to use
the Acoma lot, called Spotlight on Englewood at Englewood Days . Amy , a most amazing new employee at the
Chamber , has been working really hard on gathering all kinds of additional new events . The car show and the 4
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by 4 show and the motorcycle show will mostly take place on the Lincoln Street side, as well as the Taste of •
Eng lewood . Well , we had a challenge there . We need to have your permiss ion to use the Lincoln lots . We
need to have your permission to close Lincoln Street so that we can have the Taste of Englewood in the street.
We need·your permiss ion to use the Show Wagon so that we can have music . There are just a number of
different parts . In the previous years , we did this much earlier in the year , but there 's been just so much going
on th is year , th is is the first time we can get to you and talk about th ings . We are asking to use some of the City
property . We are asking City staff, and it is just delineated in the notes there , to help us with the cleaning of the
lots and work ing on some of the machinery . We are asking you to wa iv e a number of fees : the banner across
the street fee , the speci al event fee and one that didn 't ge' on my list. There is, in the City money office , Karen
Kennedy ... the individual vendors who come to a show and there is an individual form they need to fill out with a
$15 .00 event fee and a $40 .00 license fee , and we are asking you to waive those two fees for the vendors . As
we talked to vendors, they have sa id, why do we have to put 150 bucks into it? We can 't afford to do that. So
we would li ke you to waive those fees . We are ask ing you to spend some money ... cf the City 's money . I know
there is a pretty short supply at this point. I think that as you have a chance to look over the documents , they
will fill in lots of the blanks . I am not sure what to do at this pair c. I would be available to talk with you at a
Study Session or answer any kind of quest ions . Usually with a request like th is , there is a bill that comes before
you and some kin d of great form that you guys vote on . I doo 't know how we can move things foONard . We are
kind of runn ing ou t of time and I guess I need to have yo u all say , hopefully , yes ... in the reall y near future.
Thanks for your time .
Council Member Penn sa id one qu ick question . Have you seen th is response from Brook in Commun ity
De vel opment ? Mr. Co hn said yes . Mr. Penn sa id I just wanted to make sure you had seen it.
Mr. Cohn said Broo k Bell has been our liaison with the City . He and I worked together with the various City
departments and worked ,,n the various specificati ons for Publ ic Safety and Publ ic Works and Par ks and Re c,
because we have all of that sort of stuff done . The final step is to have you all consider the va rio us requests
that the departments cannot grant. Mr . Penn sa id thank you sir . Mr. Cohn said Brook has offered that if you •
have any questions , you can talk to him. His extens ion is 2352 . Thank you .
Mayor Wood wa rd said thank you .
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
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(c ) i(1m Love sa id good evening Counc il and Mayor . Thank you very much for seeing us and
talking tonight. I would like to pats around a notebook while I am speaking and whil e the rest of our
membersh ip is speaking , for your use there are pic tures , and also , in the back , you will find the petition we had
signed with 340 names on It That ,. also ava ilable for your review. He said I am a resident of Highlands
Ranch and also Pres ident of Englewood Unleashed We have 200 plus members , family members , in our
organization that be lieve in pick ing up the dog waste and also enforc ing the rules that the City puts out...plus
our own rules to ma ke sure that the users al the park are educated about off-leash facilities and they are
privileges and that they need to tal :e care al everyth ing lhat surrounds being in a dog park that is off-leash with
their dogs . I think the key we want to talk about tonight Is the word co-exist. We have every desire to co-exist
with our oppos ition . We feel we have every right to be there with our dogs as well. Many, many n. i mbers and
citizens of Englewood use the park wilh the ir dogs ... do not have children and bring their dogs to play with and
many have children and bring the ir children and the ir dogs to Jason Park and Centennial to erjoy the facilities .
So , they feel they have rights as well . We feel equally ... as the custod ian of the parl<s , of all the off-leash parks ,
particula~y Jason and Centenn ial. We go to great lengths to have cleanups and brunches and invite people to
some and educate people , that are new there , to join us In a brunch and also ma ke sure that they go around the
p,lrk and pic k up waste that has been mined by people who were just either careless or didn 't care . But we do
a g·eat deal for the City to make sure that the parks stay clean . Obv iously , we can 't get everything , every inch,
but, •e do a pretty good job an d we've got a lot of people from the City come out and say the sam,; thing to us .
You k,,ow, Jason Parl< for example , is very clean because we do take care of that. We are there r,n a regular
bas is. ,\s I mentioned before , we have signed petitions of 340 plus names that you have in •he ~ooklet there , to
ke ep off-,sash privileges at Jason and Centenn ial We were pretty much oveiwhelmed to begin with that
everyone ,,.ho wanted to sign the petition very f,eely , you know , they had dogs and many peuple didn 't have
dogs , but fe ,: that that was a good thing to have and a good freedom , because we are responsible as a
co mmun ity . Esglewood Unleashed takes care of our dogs and of course , what they might leave behind . Again
the idea of co-existing is importan t. We want to make sure that everyone Is happy and we want to look for a
com promise . En~lewood Unleashed has recommended and suggested that we have signage . We broug11t a
mock -up sign that :~ here on the easel and I believe Dana will be talking about that and some other signs i;s
wel l. We wanl to ta,·, about and suggest tha t... Englewood Unleashed has orfered to pay for them . Chief
Vandermee mcntione,1 lhere were only 1 O complaints in two years . Thal is 5 a year. That is pretty minimal, I
th ink , for people that co,iplain . It seems that every couple of years this comes to the forefront and , as Council
knows , this has come up before, but we do want to co -exls l and find a way that everyone can enjoy th• park and
make sure tha t peop le are ,,'t scared and they are nol afla ld of bring ing their children to the park . That shouldn 't
be ... th ey shou ldn 't be scar,,1 of that. We feel that Code Enforcement is absolutely a must , because if you go
with an on-leash an d change '.he pol icy to ma ke Jason , lor example , on -leas h, you will reed far more resources
and enforcement from Code Er.forcement or the police to enforce the rules . But hav ing off-leash , where we self
pol ice and ma ke sure that pe opl,• follow the rules and we report them . As I mentionPd , to our competition , that
we do and we have no hes itation 11 report people that don 't take care of the ir dog waste . We have several other
speakers from Englewood Un leash•·d as well as Englewood res idents who also spea k and will tell you about
olher thin gs as well . I appre ciale you · time th is evening . Than k you
~•a yor Woodward said thank you.
(d) Dana Fou lk s, Eng lewo od rt sident , sa id I have been a member of Englewood Unleashed for
about ., year and j ust got elec ted to th e Boafl' a couple of weeks ago , Part of our strategy , to help prevent
problen .s like we are having , is to use signage 'ike several members sa id in th e Study Sess ion . Th is sign here ,
the large , on e, is the same size as the Eng lewocd sign currenlly al the park , bu t it Is a restatement of the small
sign at the 'lottom of that... that the Mayor had po i,,ted oul thet was only 6 Inches off the ground , that only the
dogs could r,•ad . Well this is a lot larger, a lot mo re readable for everybody . And th is sign here Is someth ing we
propose to pu , arou nd the playground area and the p.wilion ; someth ing cute , something very obvious to help
keep the dogs c •,t of the playground and the pav ilion , 1,, keep lhem away from the children . Again , this is
replacing the oldv signs and the Par k and Rec has alre •dy seen this art work , but we are showing these signs
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to you in hopes the City Coun ci l will also approve the m an,1 give them the go ahead . Th is is something that
Englewood Unleash ed will actually pay fo r. We have alrea t:~ got quotes from Sign Plus on Hampden to
produce them , if every:~ing is approved . I thin k that Is all I ha1 unles s you have any questions on that.
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 6
(e) Rose Mar ie Seemann , an Aurora resident , said I have a co mpany called Env lroWagg , LLC Iha! • will be composling lhe dog waste from Can ine Corral later !h is year Wtlh lh e approval and assistance of
Englewood Parks Commission and Englewood Unleashed , I am In lh e process of sollclll ng sponso rJhlps from
local businesses to finance an eco-redo of Can ine Corral , Centennial and Jason Park , The redo will Include
Canine Corra l. .. we are go ing to add separate colleclion bin s for dog was le and !rash , signs expla ining the dog
waste composting program and additional doggy pick up dispenser station s w1lh oxo -blodegradable bags
enabl ing lhe wasle lo be composted . Pel-Scoop Servtce s, wh ich Is localed near Can ine Corral , will em pty the
bins free of charge and transport the waste lo a receptacl e near !h eir fac lll ly and th e con1en11 of the receptacle
will be hauled lo the composting site in Weld County , This should result In 6 to 8 ten t of dog wasle be ing
diverted from landfills and also the plastic bags that are mingled with them . At Centennia l and Jason Parks , we
are going ic install doggy bag stations and oxo-bio bags so that each park haa five doggy bag stations , In order
to finance the doggy stations, bags and hauling , at no expense to the City , we are asking local bus inesses to
sponsor stat ions for one year in exchange for a weather proof sign of apprec ia tion on the dis pensers . We are
also offering businesses opportunit ies to sponsor the oxo-blo bags In exchange for having the ir company 's
services and products listed on the bags . We have promoted these sponsorsh ips to businesses offering pel
products and services based on the prem ise that the sites were off-leash dog parks . We currently :,ave ten
paying sponsors for 13 of the 15 stations and we have begun soliciting for bag sponsorshipc . The aim of
stationing more dispensers and oxo-b io bags is to encourage dog owners to stoop and scoop , keeping the sites
free of dog waste . The signs on the stations will mention the recycling program and encourage dog owners to
clean up after their pets . Over the years , Englewood Unleashed and City has worked hard to establish off-leash
privileges for dogs at several parks throughout the City . Other cities that I work with , Including Broomfield and
Thornton and Westm inster, are just starting to provide off-leash parks . They have plans on the drawing board
and they are putting together budg ets, because people want these parks , The City of Denver ,s also plann ing
off-leash parks in response to a growing stream of requests from residents . In short , off-leash parks are a wave
of the future . Wr.~., the eco-makeover is finished, the three parks that are completed ... when this happens this
community will be the first self-sustaining , dog waste composting program in Colorado, possibly the country . If •
this can be done, this will be done with the cooperation of the municipality , a non-profit association and local
businesse s. So right now, Englewood is ahead of the curve . Enforce regulations or equ ip Centennial and
Jason Parks to ensure safety , if that is deemed necessary , but I ask you not to go backward and make these
parks off limits fo r off-leash dogs , Thank you .
Mayor Woodward said thank you ,
(f) Jennifer Enger, an Englewood resident sa id thank you Council members for hearing us tonighl
and allowing us to express our thoughts on the off-leasl . privileges at Jason and Centennial Parks . I am not
go ing to threaten or give you an ultimatum . I would just like to speak on a couple of different aspects of those
privileges . I would prefer to refer to them as opportunities , because that Is what they are . The off-leash use is
an opportunity to people to use the park ... and to the City of Englewood . I have lived and been an active citizen
in tht City of Englewood for six years , I live with my husband and three active Siberian Husk ies, across the
street from Duncan Park , another off-leash dog park . I am thankful for the opportunity to use these off-leash
privileges as it teaches my fur children to be great additions to the commun ity . They get to sn iff around , meet
other dogs and people , and are ~reat well rounded pets . My first point , as it relates to the off-leash
opportunities, is that community building and development is so vital to our cities , Dog parks and multi-use
parks , in general , provide opportunities for people to meet their ne ighbors , get c,ut of doors , explore and er.joy
the beautiful parks of Englewood . Many people spend time relaxing with the ir children ... teach ing them . the
chi ldren , to play fetch with the family pet , allowing their children and fur children to meet others and become well
balanced . Others simply go there to bond with their pets , exchange stories with other pet o,·•ners and take a
walk in the park . I witnessed Just this th ing last night , a couple who uses the park frequently and brings the ir
dogs. Tt,ey socialize with other pet owners and then walked around, hand in hand , in the off-leash area with
the ir dogs at their side . At the exact same time, there were families w'th young children playing Frisbee in the
sa me area . Each group was enjoying their time at the park . That Is what a park Is supposed to look like . That
is co-existence . I have met and talked with many people that drive from Denver and Littleton just to use our •
parks for the ir off-leash opportunities . This also proves to be a community development tool. One , It advertises
our City to neighboring cit ies with less opportunity, enticing the people to relocate to Englewood . Secondl y,
people visiting our parks spend money in Englewood . They purchase gas , wate r for thems elves and their pets ,
visit the local pet store and shop for a bite to eat What an asset , in so many aspects , for the City of Englewood .
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F.nglewood City Council
.tuly 20 2009
P ge 7
Tt,ese same people choose our parks because !heir neighborhood or cily park does nol have the same
~.·oo rtunities . How awest•me is !hat ? My sislers are here. live in Denver . and the y have 10 drive all the way to
~tu pleton to use an off-leash dog park . They come here equally to use our parks and our off-leash opportunil ies
a•~ !hey recommend ou r parks to their f,iends . Finally , as far as community developmenl goes , the off-leash
opportunities assist in and create a safe park for all lo enjoy . Wi lh more people coming lo our park and ils off-
le ash opportuni ties . there are more eyes on the park mak ing sure thal It is safe from crime and vandalism .
Cri me is less likely to occur when a park is in use . People and their pels use the par k from early in lhe morning
until dusk , keeping it safe from vandalism and crime . The majority of dog owners to use a park really wan! a
clean , safe env lronm~nt to enjoy . They diligently clean up after the ir pets to keep it clean and lush . That Is
evident at Jason Parl<. An interesting fact...in 2006 , the City of Englewood performed a study of Englewood
residents on the ranking of open space assets for the City of Englewood . Just beh ind multi-use pa rk s, oog
parks were rated 7™ out of 39 assets , playgrounds -28™. These opinions can be found In the Englewood Parks
Master Plan . A few years ago , I worked very hard to save Duncan Park in my ne ighborhood . At our celebration
after saving Duncan Park , I met Englewood Unleashed . At th is point I became a member of Englewood
Unleashed . This brings me to my second po int. I became a member and now a Board membe r because I
found them to be community leaders , educators and parks stewards . They ca,e for dogs , human relations and
promote great dog ownership . They promote responsible off-leash dog relatio ns . Th is is where my beliefs
come in. I, wit~ Siberian Huskies and their independenl nat"re r.m very re &pectful of off-leash opportunities
and promote t >od off-l eash practices . There Is alwa ~s Qt'ing tr be bad apples . no matter whal the rules are .
But my question and belief is. why punish the good apples <i•• . i,,cluded , who value their freedom to use the
park , the off-leash opportunities and the enjoyment the parfo,1 . ;ide . To use Councilman Oakley 's and
Counc ilwoman Wilso n's words, let's not pun is h the good pc c and dogs , let's comprom ise and co-ex ist to
creaie the best parks that Englewood can provid a. Thank you .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you .
(g) Colleen McManus , an Englewood resident . said thank you Council for hearing us tonight. We
appreciate it. I am just here to share one of my stories . I've been a res iden t of Englewood for five years now
and have served on Englewood Unleashed Board of Directors for the last th1ee years . I am thankful for Jason
Park , in particular, because three years ago when I got my first dog ever, someone told me about Jason Park
and hc,w you can have your dog off-leash there . So , at 6 months old ... and he was fixed , I took him over there
an d : think to this day , he is now three and a half years old , he Is well behaved , listens for the most part. bu t can
co-exist with other dogs and other humans at Jason Park and at other areas that I've taken , all because of his
tra ining and social ization Iha! he learned at Jason Park initially . And it has been great exe rcise for both him and
I, walking around the park . And then it also introdu ced me to Englewood Unleashed , which helped me give
back to the community , both humans and the dogs of ou r co mmunity . So , I am thankful lo be a part of all !he
things !hat Jen had sa id . I look a lol of names for our pelitio ns that we gathered and I was surprised al the
amounl of people that weren 't aware of the rule signs . I just want to note that some who did sign the petit io n
weren't aware of the ru les . And then , Englewood Unleashed suggests ... one of our suggestions is in the activity
side of Engl ewood 's Activity Guide ... to maybe change the dog park column to off-leash privileges or someth ing
of that nature , so that when people are visiting our parks in the community and polentially running the pav ilio ns ,
that they know that there are off-leash privileges . So then they will have the option to look at th •! other parks
that don 't have off-leash privileges . if they aren 't comfortable with be ing al a park with dogs off-,eash . That was
just one of our suggestions . It is in our binder , a copy of th is . And then finally , just during the 1;1uuy Session , I
wanted to propose to move that bag dispenser , that is at the playground right now , to the north end of the
parking lot. There is no signage and there is no bag dispenser and du ring monthly park cleanups that is where I
tend to find some .. over in that kind of area where you don 't see a lot of people playing , but that is where the
dogs go . Thank ye , for you:-time and I am available for any quest ions .
Mayor Wood ward sai d than k you .
• Council.
(h ) Robert Ericso n, an Englewood resident and Jason Park visitor , was not present to address
(i) Rachel Sh ields . an Englewood reside nt, said I live th ree houses away from Jason Park on
South Lipan Street. My husband and I have both grown up in Englewood and have now decided to r;;i;e our
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 8
son here . We have lived in our current res idence for five years and have a dog that we take to Ja son Par k once
or !W ice a day We also take our dog to Cenlennial Park , IWo or three times a week. I really appreciate tha t
Englewood has off-leash parks and I th ink that adds to the City's appeal . It was a; ,c ~f the reasons that we
chose 10 buy our house so close to the park In the first place. I have been an active member of Englewood
Unleashed for four years now and th ink th ey are great advocates for preserving and mainta ining our off-leash
parks I also have organized mostly park cl eanups and brunches at Jason Park. We clean up the park to help
keep It clean ior off-leash dogs and provide information about the park to new people who come to take the ir
dogs there, As on organ ization , we have strived to make sure lhat people clean up after their dogs and keep
the ir dog s off the pl aygrounds , picnic area and areas w~err ·11ere is game play. As a mother myself, I want to
keep Jason Park a safe place fo r my child and dog to play . , all the years tha t I have gone to the off-leash
parks In Englewood , I have only w itnessed a few rare issue,; "'" the dogs being off-leash and all those issues
were re solved without turning into a large problem . I understo i d everyone's concern that would like to close the
parks to off-leash dogs altogether, since a few bad dog owne ,, have caused all of us problems . I would like to
propose , however, that if It comes to a decision to close the parks entirely to off-leash dog s that the Council at
least consider limiting hours for dog owners to early morn ing and late evening, when there is less people in the
park or let us have the winter m~nths, like October to March , as the majority of people I've seen who use the
parks In the cold w inter months are dog owners. Thank you for your time .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you.
0) Carla Archuleta , a Denver resident, said I am currently on th u Board of Englewood Unleashed
and , wllh the Council's permission , I would like to read a letter for Al ice Hanna , on her behalf since she was
unable to make it ton ight. She is out of town .
M~yor Woodward said I bel ieve we have a copy of Al ice's letter. I saw it in there . That was one of the ground
rules we set up at the beg inning , was not ,, have alternates . Ms Archuleta sa id okay. Well , you do have a
copy. Mr. Woodward said yes. we ao have s copy and we will read it. Ms. Archuleta said thank you . Mayor
Woodward sa id lhank you .
(k) Kendra Drury, an Englewood re, 'dent, said good evening Mr. Mayor and Council. Thank i rou
for address ing lhls lmportanl Issue. Last year I a,. 'pied a dog from the Colorado Humane Society on Platte
River Drive name Oliver. He Is social. I am social and we spend happy hours at Jason Park many nights a
week when I get home from work . So, I was ecstatic to discover that Englewood had not one but five off-leash
dog parks Jason Park is the best in my opinion after vi siting four of the five . The experience that endeared me
to Ja son Park was In early spring and one of my first visits to Jason Park. A middle school eirl's soccer team
ended their field practice and began running sprints around the park . A few dogs , incl uding m ine , and a Greal
Da ne named Nudge we re playing. Many of the girls greeted Nudge, a regular at the dog park, by name and
brielly nuuled th e dog on the head. I was impressed thal this park was a successful multi-purpose park tha t
re spe cted all occupa nts and m ade the use of many, a priority, including the dog owners. I have not witnessed
any problems In th e park, Howeve r, th is is an important benefit for me , a three year ta xpayer and ·esident ol
Englewood and my lamlly I am pass ionate aboul th is issue and was happy to circulate a petition to ensure that
all Englewood residen ts with dogs have more than one off-leash park ta enjoy, especially one with a special
opportunity for the owners , w hich Is not feas ible at the Canine Corral with the limited seating and no gra ss . It
was easy to obtain 1 O signatures on th e petil ion I to ok from Englewood Unleashed. I believe that Englewood
takes pride In serving th e needs of all the com mun ity, includ ing dog owners, and I look forward to a solution that
benefits everyone T ha nk you aga in for addressing this important issue .
Ma yor Woodward sa id th ank you .
(I) M ickey W ent:, an Englewood resident, said go od evening Mayor Woodward and fellow City
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Council membe rs. I discovered Jason Park after we purchased our dog from the Colorado Correctional
Industries. W e foun d out that Jason Park was an off-leash park and I have come to depend on Jason Park as a
means to exercise ana .:~l allze my furry family member. I would li ke to share with you three or four positive •
aspects about keeping Eng lewood Jason P~rk off-lease. First, the re 1s a physical/mental stlmulalio n advantage.
It is an excellent source of exercise for acltve dogs Off-leash parks allow dogs to get ad equate physical/menta l
exerc ise , thereby lessening des tructive and annoying behaviors, in gen eral , which can benefit society as a
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Englewood C.ll'l Council
July 20 2009
Page 9
whole . There are educationa l advantages . It is a good opportun ity lo• owners to learn about dogs through
observation and provide the oppo11.,n ity to learn from more experienced owners . Th ere is an opportun ity fo r
well mannered dog advocates to demonstrate ho w they turned the ir dog into a well mannered dog as wel l.
There are also commun ity advantages . Off-leash parks help bri ng a commun ity together and co -exis t.
Furthermore , at Jason Park there are no rollerbladers , bikers or skate boarders that are likely to be
encountered , thus sh ~wing that Jason Park is a benefic ial ofr-le rish dog park . Now , we have cons idered several
th ings . We understand that some people are nervous about their dogs ... about the dogs and children being
togr,ther . Some things I want you to consider. As I was d~ing my research , I was looking all over the Internet
for what other mun icipalities were doing . So these ideas , I just want you to consider. For example , I found that
some parks offered separate hours exclus ively for dogs . For example , in the morn ing from 7 to 9:30 a.m. and in
the even ing for a few hours . Thal is also an option . I heard about fences . I started thinking about fences and I
started realizing ... well , Is a fence ju st for a boundary , a barrier between dogs and children ... not necessarily .
Fencing around the playground and eat ing area prov ides safety for children . Children would not be as likely to
wa:k up to a parking lot or walk away and get los t. So , it provides more opportunities for safety for ch ildren than
ji:st a barrier between dogs and children . There is another th ing to consider as well . For example , there is a
remedy for people who are scared of an aggress ive dog or dog owners who aren 't picking up their waste and
have to call police or enforcement. Something else I discovered was having a special. .. like a cell phone
number, like a star 211 or something , where someone could call and say , "there is an aggressive dog here in
Jason Park and someone please come ". So there is already a reme.i;-. And someth ing that I would like to point
out... the point is , should we keep ii leashed or unleashed? Dog waste to me s ... I could be wrong ... is a side
issue. Because whether dogs are on-leash or off-leash doesn't matter. If irresponsible owners aren't going to
pick ii up off-leash , why would you think they are going to pick it up on-leash , as well? So that is something to
conside r. There is a remedy . They could call enforcement, coJld have separate hours , you have a fenc ing
opportunity as well . Lastly , I would like to say that with our dog , we also see Jason Park as an opportuni ty for
training , as well . There aren 't many public places .,here we can tra in our dogs in public. Offering a place like
Jason Park to tra in our dogs , to become soc ial and well behaved is a necessity in our community . I thank you
for your time Mayor and fellow City -:ou ncil Members .
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
(m) Sarah Ewy was listed on the Agenda as a scheduled vis itor. Jared Ewy , an Englewood
res ident , sa id I Just respectfully I equest that I speak without her ... she was RO lng to come tonight... if that is okay .
While I am up here with the microphone , I would like to pay tribute to an an,azing woman who is at home with a
two-year old and the wortd 's hungriest infant. I ,:an wait or. .. Mayor Woodward said is Sarah your. .. ? Mr . Ewy
said she is my wife . Mayor Woodward said she 's your wife . We were go ing to speak together but it didn 't work
out , a lactation issue . There was laughter. Council Member Moore said I think it was safe to assume that they
signed up as a coup ld. Mr. Ewy sa id I live just across from the park. I wish my wife could be here tonight ,
because her life was put in great danger by a park den izen , but ii was not a dog , and I will get to that in a
momen t. We bought our house in 2002 and we were getting ii t•Jcause there was a light rail wh ich we liked ,
there was the Rec Center and the park . Little did we know that the par k was not go ing to be an asset , but
actually a liabili ty . I don 't know anyboJy who went to the park in 2002 or 2003 . You really kind of put you life in
your own hands . There was a kind of rabid herd of geese and some kids that probab ly could have used some
gu idance . Did I put thGI ently enough? In 2004 I was in Pueblo and my wife was at the house by herself and a
kid was sh ot up against , •e wall , the outside wall of our bedroom . And they had been at the park and a fight got
ou t of control and I\\ · !.i·!u ended up shot. Lu ckily no one died , but there were some serious injuries and we sti l!
have some blood on o· Ldck , that we often show guests ... not realtors or appraisers or anyth ing . There was
laughter. But there seE ·rned to be some doubt about the respectability of the neighborhood and we love it , we
wanted lo be there . La ter In 2004 ... one day there was a stream of Subaru 's and SUV's pulling into our
ne lghbo :h ood ,1t Jaso n rark . We did n't know what was going on , but we danced like we had Just won the
property value lotte ry May be they are putt ing in a Lands End outlet... we did not know. There was laughter .
But what had happened was that Bates/Logan had j ust been closed and the off-leash privileges of Jason Par k
were going to be used by people who knew it was off-leash . We had lived th ere for three or four years already ,
• or I guess two or three ye ars already , and did not know . It is not clearty stated and we didn 't bother going there ,
which is unfo1tunate . And then , we got a dog and we became a part of th is incredible community which is
represented he ;e tr day by ... well if I could ask for those of you who are proponents or use the park , If you could
stand , or ra ise your hand . These perple, who I rejoice every da y in ta ki ng my two year old and my infant and
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 10
my wife and there has , in the la st three years , since we 've had a dog .. there ha s not been a da y when we hav e
not been at the par k. And what Is important about that is that we are stewards of the park . We keep ii clean .
Many of us , like myself after a long tense da y at wo rk , rel ish see ing someone breaking rules . I actually kind of
look forward to see ing a do g use the dr inki ng founta in. So , we keep the park clean and we work well with
others . I know a lot of the people who coach little league in this town and I have asked them about it , if they
mind . They like it. They like how ii works . And I wish I had taken photos and pictures of the incredible
symb iot ic relationsh ip between those who use the park for the athletics and for the high school kids and the up
and com ing T-ballers and those who bring their dogs there. I have to finish with an economic quote , or at least
an anecdote . In 2006 , we were going to remodel our house and a lot of our fri ends , some of whom lived in
Englewood with the ir starter home and then moved on to other places , implored us not to . They said not
Englewooa . We liked where we were and a lot of that had to do with the community that comes together eve ry
morning, afternooa ... the responsible commun ity al Jason Park . And we dropped ... well originally the est imate
was $50 ,000 .00 and it ended up $90 ,000 .00 on our house . I do stay awake and cry sometimes , but it is a
beautiful home now and we have made that investment and we are going to stay . And we have two children
that we hope to ra ise there . We live amongst ne ighbors who have kids , who are starting to think that they too
would rather stay in a convenient neighborhood , In a City with lots of water, instead of moving out to some
bedroom community and being tortured by the commule . We like were we live and we love the park .
Councilman Oakley , three years ago we were doing the same th ing and you had mentioned that after the recess
there was one person left here who opposed the park and maybe 40 or 50 who were for it , and you , and I
admired this ... you told her that as a Council member , as an elected official , you stood up for that one person ,
and I wish all elected official looked at it like that. And tonight I ask you not onl y to hear of the passion of Ms .
Griego , but of all of us who use the park for the community that it is and are stewards of the off-leash privileges
at Jason Park . Thank you .
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
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(n ) Tracy Jones , a res :dent of High lands Ranch , said I was also here June 1" regard ing the •
prob lems at ,la son Park . I left wit~ the impression that City Coun ci l's plan was to fence off the north side of the
park for the dogs . I was doing a little bit of research on dog parks and these are just some of the gu idelines that
I found interesting , if you are plann ing on buil ding a dog park . A dog park should be fenced by a 4 to 6 foot
fence and double gated for an entrance and ex it. There should be a separate enclosure for small dogs, so that
they don 't get trampled on by bigger dogs. Dogs should be walked before entering the dog park , so they are
calmer. Dogs should have strict rules and be strictly enforced by dog officials T~e location should be
appropriate for all dogs , their owners and the community . The park should be safe for dogs and the people and
it should have a fence or a barrier, so that the dogs don 't run away . Children should not be insi de the dog park .
An over excited dog can bump a ct,ild while playing , caus ing the child to fall or even worse , bite a child . An
unfen ced dog park brings problems to people who live near by from dogs that are not properly trained . I
understand all the benefits of taking your dog to a dog park ... like owners ~ettin g to socialize with oth•r owners
and letting your dog run around to release some energy , especially if you live in an apartment. I get ii. I just
don 't get why there has to oe one at Jason or any other ne ighborhood par<, whether It is fenced or not fenced . I
know ii is expensive , bu t have another dog park built , like the one at Be::dview, if that one is getti.,g too
crowded , so that Jason can be how it was before the dogs took ov er. Do not put a fenced dog park in Jason .
There has to be anothe r place in Englewood to build one . If the owners like the ir dogs to run freely , maybe the
members of lh ll off-leash comm ittee ca n set up a donat ion bo x, at the dog park on Windermere or do some
fundra isers , since Kim Love sa id they were the ones that ra ised all the money for that dog park . Or maybe th is
time , Englewood can help lhdm out. It will be expe nsive , bu t it might be cheaper for the City o• Englewood to
bu ild another dog park than to have a child bitten or inju red . Englewood has sa id tha t it is the Jog owner's
respons ibillr1 if any1hing was to happen . But how cou ld we expect the owners to do so , if the• can 't even be
respons ible enough to pick up the ir own dogs ' poop . We are supposed to believe they will stick around if
something bad was to happen? I don 't think so . It would fall back on the City of Englewood . Is the City of
Englewood prepared to take the responsibil ity if th is shall ever occur? Dogs are animals . They might be under
vo ice control at the ir own home , but in a big open space, owners tend to los e their voice control , because the
dogs wander too far from them , especially when the owners are soc ial izing with others . When someth ing •
catches the dog 's eye, whether it be a kid, a squirrel or food, they are going to go after it , no matter how loud
you call them back. City Coun ci l has sai d !hat th ey haven 't rece ived many compla ints about the dogs at Jason
Park . Th is could be b&c ause some people like me , thought when someth ing happens to the m, with the dogs ,
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 11
that it was a one time thi ng or some people just didn 't know wh o to comp lain to . And some just decided to quit
goi ng tJ the park and even going near the park . Here are just a few inc ide nts that have happened to multip le
Englewood residents . People on the ir lu nch break , eating at the park, when dogs ha ve tried to take the ir food .
Across the street from Jas on Park, some peop le have th eir dog off the le ash and they urinate on th is lady 's
gra ss fi rst and then go to the deg park. Own ers do not hav e their dogs on a leash when they are in the pa rk ing
lot. Two peop le witnessed dogs dri nki ng from the fountain on separate occa sio ns . A dog jumped on a pregnan t
lad y's bell y and scratched her bad enough that she bled. A fam ily was hav ing a picn ic when a dog snatched
fo od out of a toddler's hand . An elderly lady ... only about five two , was taking a walk around the park when a
dog came from beh ind her and pu t his front paws on he r shoulders . A person , who has two small dogs , took
the ir dogs to the dog park ... or to the park ... and the dogs were attacked while they were on a leash . Someone
wilh a mid-size dog refuses to walk their dog ciose to Jason Park because of the dogs th at are no t on a leash .
A lady who runs a daycare by Jason Park won 't take her daycare kids oecause of the problems she has had
with th e dogs . Another lady that runs a daycare took her kids to the park last week and she had dogs app ro. L!,
the kids . Paren ts have .>ddlers step in dog poop numerous times , on and off the playground . My kids have
had aggress ive dog s ch -after them a couple of times. When I say aggressive , the dogs are in attack
mode ... running , bark ing , growling Two dogs tried snatch ing ou r food !hat we had cate red in for a f~m ily
re1 •nion and scared all the ki ds th !lt were eating . W · daughter has stepped in dog p, ~ barefooted . I can 't list
every compla int because of the a:lotted tim e I haw ,Pen given . But , hopefully , you get the idea of how bad it
has been at the park . Loose ,:o~s . kids runn ing ana screa,r,ing , along with food , do not mix . T'1at, I th ought ,
was comm on sense . Do th ase owners understand that , for a kid , their automatic reaction is to run from a dog
that they are scared of , especially "sen it is co ming at them aggress ively? Who can blame them when they are
just as tall as the dogs are? For the ow:1 ers th at don 't understand , it would be lik e a tiger run ni ng at them , and
someone saying don 't worry , he won't bite , and act like i! is no big deal. I'm as !,i ng the City or Englewood to
ple ase tu rn Jason Park back to the childran . I don 't ttoink it wo uld be a good idea to make th~ north side of the
park , or any other section , Into a dog park . Jason Pa nt is beautiful. Once you section off tl ,a l north side , the
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green grass will start to disappear and tum into dirt. J11sl like it did at Bellev iew . The poor ne,~hbors that live
along the north side of the park won 't be able to look out from their backya rd anymore and see the beaut ifu l
park . Instead , they will see a bunch of dogs urinating and dogs would be fenced off, instead of ru nning through
the whole park. I'm sure there will be a lot more dogs barking at each other , that these neighbors wou ld have to
listen to all day , if you fence off a section of the park . If I was one of these neighbors who lived on the north ~ide
of the park , I would alrc• 1y be pretty upset , because along the ir fence line is yellow grass from all the dogs
rel ieving themselv es. If you think about mak ing a section of th e par k, please th ink about the guidel ines I have
talked about in the beg inning and how that is not only going to affect the surround ing houses , but Jveryone else
who uses the park. Th ink about what they will have to see and deal wit h every day . Remember , Ja son is on ly
so big and from what I ca n see , it has just enough open space for the reserve soccer s:,d T-ball players an d
peo ple who once played volleyball or have a picnic whenever they want. In my ~p inio n, tnere is not enough
room for a dog park at Jason . It may seem that I don 't li ke dogs , but that is no t true . Ne it her are the peop le that
have signed th is petition . Half the people that signed were dog owners themselves . I love dogs , bu t they don 't
be lo ng at Jason Park without a leash . Allowing dog owners to bring their dogs to the park , was a privil ege . Th is
privilege should be revoked . Two years ago , this sa me issue came up to City Counci:, t.o change Ja son Park
back to an on-leash par k. You would think then , dog owners would have !his stra ightened up , but they have n't.
When ii wa s turned down two yea rs ag o, the reason I was gi l'a n, was because more peoµl e showed up that
were for the dog park and from what I understan d, a lot of tt>em were Denver res ident s. I would st rong ly
suggest that you ta ke Into co ns ideration all the pe ople wh o signed our petition , since the msjority of thern are
Eng lewood re si dents . Remember , al l of you work for th e oeople of Englewood . Not for the people of Denver or
any other city . I just wanted to say that there are respon s.Jle dog owners ou t the re. I understand that. But
there are a lo t more people who go to Jason Park , who own dogs that are not respons ltle. The dog leash is th e
se co nd on our prio rity . It is the dogs that come up to our kids th at we are worried about. The dog leash is
second . The dog leash , yes , will be there ... if the dogs are on a leash ... but it is go ing to be less of it. Beca us e
once the owners fi nd out the dogs have to be on a leash at the park, they are not go ing to want to go there .
They are 3olng to go to the Canine Corral or w"erever else ... where dogs can be off the leash . And anothe r
th ing, since when do th e dogs take priority over our kids ? When do we compare dogs to kids ? Dogs are
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an ima ls . Kids are huma ns . Kids have the right over a dog , any day , is my opinion . I just hope City Counc il
really tak es th is into consi dera tion ... of ta king all of Eng lewood parks ... put them back to on-leash parks . II is
getti ng rid ic ulous and it is gett ing out of hand . I understand tha t dogs are li ke kids to dog owners . I com ple tel y
underst and . The y are like family members . Bu t the fact is the y are not the kids . Our ki ds ta ke pr io rity over an y
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 12
dog . I lh ink that 1s about it. With fenc ing off ... th e plan that Mr . Oa kley camd up wilh ... of putt ing the fence
up ... you are still ... the park was made for the kids ... and for the fence going up ... you said ii was about 60 % that
was going to go to the dogs . Aga in, the dogs are taking priority over the kid s. I really hope that you take into
cons ideration al l of the Englewood residents that took the ir lime to fight it. Th~nks .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you .
(o) Robert Taylor , an Englewood resident , said I live abou t a block from Jason Park . We moved to
that house in 1975 . We had no ch ildren , but soon we did have a dog . And soon we had two children , both of
them t.ave gone all the way through the school system here in Englewood . They have gone onto adult lives . All
the years that we had those children , a block away from Jason Park , we were able and frequently took them to
1hat park to enjoy the playground there and to run around in the grass and sometimes we would be involved in
c;ports . All of that seems to have changed two or three years ago . Some people sa id some very nice things
about the new movement of SUV's and people coming into ocr park area , apparently mot ivated by the ability to
bring a dog from outs ide the Englewood area , because we have this wonderful grass filled park and that is
someth ing that has changed the mood and atti tude of those of us who live around the park . Yes, there are
people who enjoy walking across the street and letting the ir dog run free, sometimes violati ng th e ru les of leash
law getting there and getting back . But my concern is that the change that happened just a few years ago , and
it was rather obvious to those of us who live in the neighborhood , when all of a sudden the gates were open to
free runn ing dogs . I have owned dogs . We have owned dogs all of the yea rs we have been here . Of course ,
we were in that period of time where all dogs were to be on-leash at all times . That seems to have changed
rad ically within the park , and now we are among those people who are concerned about just going through the
park . I am also wondering how th is co-existence works with regard to the use of the park for sports . There is a
full size soccer and rugby field and the T-ball that has been mentioned several times . All of those things are
happening 1ight on the place where the dog s have to do their thing . I guess that is my biggest concern is the
•
health issue that has changed in the park : •ea over the last fe w years . So , that's ... I'm just trying to make my •
point. I was originally just go ing to say a couple of words and then po int to the screen , because what I did was I
put together a video tha t was a compilation of a tape that was done by Martha and Tracy . They gathered over
th e course of just a few days , a fairl y extensive amount of video information of the way th ings actually look in the
park when it is actually the dogs . Somebody mentioned seeing maybe 4 dogs per owner. The tape shows at
least 5 with th is one owner in one situation . Most of the time the dogs are totally out of the range of control of
any owne r or controller , because the y are simply nowhere near the dogs . Most of the time the dogs are
relat ively harmless . They are hav,ng a fun time . Everybody is bouncing around and burning off calories , but the
problem is. the owners or the people who come to the park , seem to sh ow up with several more dogs than they
might have any control over and they simply sit back and open the door and let them roll . They have no control.
And if someth ing were to happen ... and yes , it may be rare , but it does happen , then ther1:,:. those issue ~ of
who is responsible for this . We , as Englewood citizens , am 'Jltimately respo nsible . If we had a situat ion that
allowed something dangerous to happen , snmett,ing permane .1t1y damaging to a child , we , the City of
Englewood , would be the ones that would be forced to come to lhe table and deal with that financially . So , I
guess , I have tried to make my po int without the hel p of my vide o screen . You have a copy of it and will be able
to see ii later . Most of the comme nta ry on this ... it 's simply a few days worth of tape ... I knocked out about 90 %
of the time In it... to co ndense it down to , primarily , the wo rds that are being said , the observat;ons by those and
there are actually a couple of testimonials or statements by people who have had problems and have had
concerns aboul th is ... that are in th e brief video . There is no narrator . It is simply kind of a real time record of
what happen ed over the course of just a few da ys, up lo about a wee k age . Now I'm trying to wrap all this up
The video did a nicer job of it. It's simply , aga in, in the real time ... th, way things were recorded . The last shot
is one of several of the deg exc rement in a pile , right on the edge of the playground . There is ano the r one
earli er that is just like tha t. And the little kids walking around and com menting on that. Th at is kind of my last
word . It was on the video too . I appreciate your concern . I am expressing my concern as now a 35 yea r
res ident of Englewood , who lives one block from Jason Park . (Clerk 's note : The DVD that Mr. Taylor provided
the City Clerk was not compatible with the equipment and was unable to be viewed during the meet ing .)
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you . •
7. Recognition of Unscheduled Public Comment
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Englew ood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 13
Mayor Woodward sa id please limit these presentations lo five minutes . Again , there 1s qu ite a list of
un sched uled visitors , so Council may dec ide •o lim it this lo 45 minutes . Typ ically , we would lake a break al
9:30 p.m. and pick up the rest of the public comment at the end of the meeting .
(a ) Rick Gill i!, an Englewood ,e,,ident , said I would like to continue our conversation we started al
the last Council session regarding Ms . Wilson , a Council member . be ing appo inted to a board posit ion . A
posit ion that she was appointed to was on Code Enforcement. Myself and a bunch ot other citizens were not
thrilled that the City would take a citizen position , volunteer position , and put one of your own in Iha! pos ition . II
doe sn't look good tor the City and ii doesn't help our citizens feel that they have the right to apply tor a board or
a com miss ion position wilho•Jt wondering it Ccu ncil will pul one of their own in their pla cs . Back on January
26 '", 'his Coun cil had a Studv Session . That Study Sess ion was taped and tor the record , you can go to
englewoodc itizen s.org or J.,n uary 26'" and you can get a copy ot th is presentation . I am going lo quote a te,,
th ings of that , because I an •:oncemed , and just to start off I would like Counc ilman Penn and Counc ilma1,
Jefferson to kick back . I wH't to thank you tor your support and voting against having a Councilpersor, fill a
posit ion . But my conce rr, ,•: •ne rest of lhe Council and why you wo uld say something one time and then vote a
different wa y. Back on ,a .. c•ry 26'", Councilma n Moore said this ... that he brought up a concern say ing th is .
that it a Councilman took a pos ition , we would lo se a cit l~en voice and also that Council membe~s level an o
in fluence grows . Now I took that and we did some research . A few of us citizens got together and decided to
see what Ms . Wilson would do as a Councilman and on a board and commission . From January to now , Ms .
Wilson , as a Counc il member , seems to th ink her job is code enforcem ent, because you have ten times more
code enforcement questions tor Cnuncil than any othe r C.ouncll person . So , I do n't know it you think your
pos ition is to run around the City looking for Code viola \1ons , bu t we do have that on record that you are
presenting that. Mr. Moore also mentioned that in that session that Counci l members vote on boards and could
in fluence a vote . I agree . Ms . Wilson felt that she was be in g penalized it she wasn't allowed to serve on the
Commission because she was a Council member . Well, since when is the high honor, of being a Council
member , a penal ized positi on? I ask that you choose one or the other . It bei ng on Code Enforcement is that
important , then res ign from your pos itio n here . Or, it this position Is more i!T.portant, maybe you should resign
Code Enfo rcement but the City residents do not appreciate you serving on both . Ms . Wilson [Clerk's note : Mr .
Gillit said Ms . Moore but it is assumed that he meant Ms . Wilson .] was concernea about getting back on the
board . I said Ms . Wilson [Clerk 's note : Mr. Gillit said Ms . Moore but it is assumed that he meant Ms . Wilson .]
you seem like a good person , but it you really good at what you do , surely when that position comes back up ,
they will b ing you back on . I don 't see what the problem is of feel ing you can 't get back on . Mr. Gill i! continued
saying Mr . Moore said that be ing removed from the board Is part of be ing on Council. Again , this is all on
record , the ir vo ice s. And I agree with that. Mr . Moore also stated th at he t~lt the Council members shou ld not
be on boards . You also mentioned that you should ... y~u also joked in this Study Session that maybe you
should get on the Water Board ... wouldn 't that be fine? What are you going to do then? Great listen on th is
tape , so li sten to that and see what again ... Mr . Moore you were on the side of citizens at that meeting '-nd you
argued the right way , but inste ad you vol~ tor a fellow Council member and aga inst the citizens . Here aga in, the
citizens see favorit ism and cron yism . Ever wonder why the citizens don 't trust Counc il? I believe that •.•hat is
best to r the City of Englewood and more impo~,~ot , tor Ms . Wilson 's personal agenda , is that Ms . Wilson should
res ign from her Cou nc il po,ition , it she feels that Code Enforcement is where she really needs to be . Mr .
Moore , you are also oo a board and one of the thi ngs that Councilman Penn stated , and a great idea . is th at
instead of being a mr.rr t-er of these boards , you should be a liaison . G1eat idea . I thought It was fantast ic .
Grea t thought. Beca 1se you have influen ce . ?eople of the Ci ty do look up lo you . Yo u are the voice ... you are
a ·,ote . You do make de ci sions that affect all of us . And to be on this Council and I be on a board is still a
confli ct ot interest. I said it last time and I will say it aga in this time ... it is not proper and th is should be looked at.
I'm as ki ng that we pass an ordinance that no Coun cil member te allowed to sit on any boa rd while serv ing as a
Counc il membe r. It a Council member feels that they are valuabl e and they should be cons idered for
rea ppointment on ce off ot City Coun cil , it will probably be a good th ing tor them, sin ce yo :i r friends on th e
Council will probably put you back on . Mr. Oakley , you staled in th is January 26'" session ... Coun .:li Me 1nber
Moore sa id your time is up . Mr. Gillit said that was five minutes? Council Member Moore said "'e actually gave
you a little bit more , because of the timer malfunctio n. So , your time is up
Counc il Membe r Moore said I will say I don 't gel to respond to you until the end of this sess ion , and ii may be
thre e hours before we get there . But please kn ow , I will respon d lo your campaign lactic at the end of this ...
Mr Gilli! sa id !h is is nol a campaig n tactic , th is is record . Mr. Moore said ii is record and I will sta nd behind
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 14
everylh in g lhat I sa id at that meet ing and we will cove r that at the end of the session . Bui ii Iust may be awhile ,
so I would just want the people that will leave , probably before that time to .. Mr . Gillit sa id fo r yu u to say it ,s a
campa ign thi ng is , is.. Mr , Mo ore said it will giv e me an opportuni ty to expla in my characteriz at ion of lhe same
events . So , it will come up at the end of th e sess ion . Thank you . Mr. Gill it said by lhen you will have time to
iisten to your com ments as well., Mr . Moore sa id I know what my co mments were and I stand behind what I
did both eve nings .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank yo u.
(b) Heather Duran sa id good even ing . I have been a citizen and resident of Engle wo od for many
years . I am five houses from Jason Park . I use lhat park every single day with my children . First off I would li ke
to sa y I am very disturbed at what I walked into at your Study Sess io n, of a bunch of peo ple sitti ng around try ing
t,, make a dec ision , when you haven 't heard the puol ic and I am very upset to hear aboul funding and mone y
and you guys sit here and tal~ about a fence and money , when there is an option that doe sn 't cost an yt hing or
hardly an yt hing . I don 't th ink anyone has lhr0wn oul Rolo lo Park . Rotolo Par k is right across lhe street from
Jason Park. It is an excell ent park for dogs , It has a huge grassy area and it is not used for any su ch
sports ... any time ... and there are hardly any kids lhere on lhal pla yground ... ever. There is off-street park ing for
the dog owners and there is also a little canal that the ir dogs can go and gel wate r from so they don 't have to
bring water everyday for lheir dogs , So, I am very disturb ed about the conversations of fenc ing and mone y.
And not only ctoe s fencing cost money , but when you start to segregat e things ... I don 't care if it is land or
wha t.., you are segregating people , And the more we fight aga inst ea ch other about dogs and peo ple , you are
going to cause more problems and WE are not gett ing alon g. If we can find a mediation and find a middl e
ground with people and sla rt gett ing along, thal'~ when lhings are going to happen . So , you want to put in a
fence , you are going to segregate people and ii is go ing to be more problems and it is going to co st more
money . Start looking al other options . If there are th is mary dog parks in the first place , why is Jason Park an
•
issue? Take vo ur dog somewhere else . Ja son Park , just FYI , for your information , has eight fields , wh ich are •
used every Monday and Wednesday ... from anywhere from 6 pm. to 7 p.m. round about 5:30 to 7:30 , every
single Mo nda y and Wednesday ... all eight fields are in use, Evey Tuesda y and Thursday , only the one field
with the batting cha in li nk is in use . But. the people that us e t, < oa r< have to cross the fields , where the dog
owners are , to get to those fields . I have my own incidents and I am unfortun ate that my camera is not
compatible with you r system , because I cannot sho w my pictures . Bu t I too have inc idenls of dogs attack ing
each other anJ fight ing . I have gone around an d filmed the fie ld$ and lhe poop lhat is on them . And on a
cons isten t bas is, since T-ball has started th is season , lh ree out cf lhe eight fields , every 1ay , hav e poo p on
lhem . I have incidenls wil h my own children , of sitting in poop . My son , a six year old bo/, with wh ile pants , sat
in poop on his first ballgam e, Tell me how you would deal wi th tn at, with a six year old crying , debating if he
wanted to go ho me and change or miss his first ballgame . It is disturb ing . Pick up your dog 's poop . I ha ve had
un fri endl y dogs , I have had friendl y dog s, I have had people threaten me and threalen to sue me , becau se I
was film ing In the park . FYI , it is a publ ic venue . You ma y film and pholograph when ever. There is not a law
against it. I have other compla ints from T-ball parents . I was also a parent tha l helped with pet itio ns an d got
si gnatures . The pa vil ion and pla yground area are not ju st an Issu e ... it's an issu e all over the par k. Ms .
See mann , grea t id ea , I sup port you, but th ey hav e lo actua ll y pic k up the poop an d put it in the trash ca n for
you lo tote it off. Is n't tha t am azin g? And also , in my picture s there is a pil e of dog poop , not four fee l away
from a tras h can an d your litt le sign and you r little dogg ie bag g,e s, Four fee t. What else ? I do n't see how you
ca I; co mpare Jas on and Centenn ial Park . The y are different. Centenn ial Park Is not in use like Jason Par k,
ev erv · y fo r activ ities , And yo u want lo ta lK about Mr. We ntz 's child ren 's mental and phys ical well being ?
Aga in , we are pu tti ng dogs over people . What about my children's menta l and ph ysical ab ility? I th ink child re n
are mo re important and th ey are our future, not do gs . And mys elf ... Mr, Ewy , I walked around and obta ined
coach 's sign atures myself , who are against the unleashed rul e and are upset about the field s and what is
happening there . Mr, Love , I ha ve as ked severa l peop le if they even know ab ou t your organizalion and who is
there to monito r it. Do you know how many an swers I got about how the y don 't eve n kno w who you are? And
no one is ever there to monito.-anylh ing . You talk about respons ib le dog owners , I don 'I know how you can all
sit here and say .. well , my dog th is and my dog th at ... and we are respons ible ... whe n there is true fact and
pictures that there ara not re spon sible th in gs go ing on . There are people bein g hurt and there are people being •
scared . It is not okay . It is not respons ible . I wou ld lik e to co-ex ist and I would like for th ings to be tog et her and
I thi nk we co all nee d to get al ong , but we need to find a happy med ium . And I a'TI glad that there are dog
owners Iha! do have the ir dogs on -lea shes . I commend it. And I do like th e idea n·i times , of different times , 1f
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 15
we could creat e tim es ... of after T-ball and they are on-leash es or off ... Co un cil Member Moore said your time is
up . Than k you . Ms . Duran said ... or whatever ... whatever we dec ide ... we need to med iate and fin d. Council
Member Moore said your lime is up . Ms . Duran sa id I think that they are throwing out some good options with
co ming up with time . {Clerk 's note : Ms . Duran 's video carnera was passed to Council . Ea ch Counc il member
was ab le to view ii separatel y.)
Mayor Woodward said thank you for presenting .
(c) Dorothy Haefeli, an Englewood res ident , said I have lived al the same address for 28 years . It
is directly across from Centennial Park . We got along just fine , before you changed ii to an off-leash dog park.
Now ii is terrorizing lo go over them sometimes . I told you before about me be ing terrorized by five dogs off of
the leash . Now , how can someone control five dogs off of a leash? I read on your sign that you are supposed
to have a leash for every dog that is off-leash . You are supposed to be carrying a leash . Do you think this man
had five leashes on his arm? No , he didn't. But , we mad e ii through that. My dogs were ... one dog was
yapp iog and snapp ing and the other dog was just trembling . The y are two little tiny dogs that would only make
hors o·oeuvre for these big dogs . I suppose I would make a big hors d'oeuvre . Bui anyway , I don 't appreciate
th is. And the lady that came with me ton ight , she walks around the par k as well . She 's lived there a long time .
She carries a great big walking stick to protect herself. Now I don 't think this should be necessary . We pay our
taxes the same as these people that are supporting the off-leash law , and most of them don 't even live in
Engl ewood . So , decide for yourselves I guess , but I hope you decide in our favor . I would like to road to you ... l
helped get the petitions and I got quite a lot of signatures . I only had three people that weren 't opposed to off-
leash ... off-leash dog s. I would like to you just three short notes that were written for me by people that I talked
with . This one was written on the 19th
• I don 't know for sure when this happened ... but ii said "when I look my
chil dren to Centennial Park , we were play ing in the playground . There was another couple there with their
children and their dog . The dog was not on a leash . They were not paying attention to the dog and the dog
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started chasing my son around . The dog started jumping on my son and scra tche d him . The parents came
over and I told them they should have the dog on a leash . They called me names and to ld me they were going
to beat me up". And it is signed and I will give you a copy of th is letter, or this note . And here is another one . It
says "I would like to let the Englewood City Council know that I am all for the dogs be ing restricted to leashes . I
live in the Centennial Condominiums across from the park . When my son takes the trash out , he has to walk
down the sidewalk bes,de the Condos to get to the dumpster . Around the end of .lune , he was taking the trash
out and a dog from the park came running across the street and would have attacked him if he hadn't put the
bag of trash between him and the dog . The owner, who was pregnrol , was calling the dog , but it wasn't
listen ing to her. M) son had to keep the trash betw een him and the tog , until the owner could get across the
street and take hold of the dog . I believe that dogs should be kept,·. :eashes in order for the owner to control ".
The next note is a very short one . It ;ays "I was fishing one day arid a dog ran right at my pole and knocked it
out into the lake and it was really bad ". And ii is signed by a fisherman . And this , I'm not going to read the
whole thing , but it says "a leashed animal is intimidated by the presence of an animal who is not leashed and a
leisurel y walk often turns into a problem . My daughter occas ionall y walks ~er Chihu~hua on the path around
Centenn ial Lake . I worry about her because of the viciousness proj ected by some animals in the yards she
passes and the aggressive an imals that are not controlled by a lea sh at the park . It only takes one inc ident to
be costly lo everyo ne involved . It would be nice if all dog owners were as responsible as the guidelines for off-
leash con trol giv e them credit. · he truth is that th ose pe rson s seekin g safety for themselves , and others , and
the ir dogs , will always use a leas h. The solution often is lo see k other parks where a leash law is in use . I urg e
Englewood City Council to be min dful that our parks should t ·, a prot ected area for all people enjoying them ·.
Council Member Moore said tha nk you , your lime is up . Ms . Ha efeli said I am sorry about that. Mr . Moore said
thank you very mu ch.
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you .
(d) Marlea Ta ylor , ar, Englewood resident , said I live about a block from Jason Park . This morn ing
I walked down lo the park al 10 :00 and talked to the grounds keepers and asked them if they had noticed any
•
problem with the dog refuse . And the fellow cutting the grass sa id that he has been ... a year ago , he notice d
more of ii around ... especially when the y have lo cl ip with the weed eater an d everyth ing ... they have noticed
more of ii th is past year . And about six months ago I was walking past the park ... ne xt to the parking lot on
Jason Street and I was accosted by a dog that got out of a SUV and ran over and starting barking at me . And I
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 16
was oul on the side walk . II too k the owner a little while to gel the dog . The dog didn 't pay an y attent ion , so the y
had to come and restra in ii. But , ii was bark ing fur iously ... il wasn 't wagg ing its tai l. Anywa y, those are my
thoughts . I do love the park . ii is great to see people with picnics and everything down there and I do th ink the
park is for peopl e.
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
(e ) Lynette He idrich , an Englewood res ident , said I live a block away from Jason Park . I was the
one who came here two years ago . I was the one person standing up for the children 's rights at that park ,
against 30 people that wanted to ~eep the park off-leash . Jim was here , Wa yne was here , Bob was here and
Gary was here at that tim e. And I was the only on e that stood up for ii. I bel ieve that we should probably c,1ake
Rotolo ?ark the off-leash dog park , because the foxes have basically taken over that playground . If you go
inside that I;ttIe green thing that lhey pu t there , there is feces in it that I believe is probably not a dog , probably a
fox or a skunk . It could be a perfectly fenced off a,ea , if lh at is what you want to do . But I bel ieve that Jason
Park , when you go down there and play T-ball , when you play soccer , when you have a picnic ... l refuse to go
there to use the pavilion . I used to rent it out every year for my daughter's birthday , but when you have dogs
that come and eat your foo d, you can't find an owne r. .. you call. .. it 's Saturday ... Code Enforcement is not
around ... it takes them two hours to show up ... it's rid iculous . I believe that we need to make some changes and
I know everybody says this is the first they have heard about It , but I did bring it up two years ago . That is all I
have to say .
May or Woodward said thank you
(f} Olga McElwain, a Denver resident , said I have come lo Jason Park for six and a half years .
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have had one dog for five years and now I have another one . I had this acc ident which I bel ieve you heard
about in previous sessions , about a dog att. •1 children . I wanted to tell you my side of the story, especially •
because I had two witnesses in tho park ing lo t. f he stink is that I had my dog and I was com ing to the car. .. and
the car was parked in the shady area near the playground . The lady was there with three children ... she was
coming to the playground . And that is how we came close to the playground area , close to the children .
Immediately after I saw that lady , I noti ced that she didn 't like my dog to be around . I am always respectful to
children and to mothers who don't wan t dogs around them . So , I called my dog and the dog immed iately came
to me and I came to the parking lot. And th is lady , withou, even telling me the word ... like I don 't want your dog
to be around my children ... she just pulled her cell phone and started to call the police . When I came to the
parking lot , there was a couple there with a baby ... and by the way , before that , m•1 dog played with their dog
around this baby and everything was peaceful , qu iet...anyway, th is man told me she was calling the police and
he was very close to her ... I was close too , from another side . So , we both heard what she was telling the
polic s. She was telling them that the dog was aggres sive and he was bark ing . The dog didn't produce a single
bark . This man sugge sted that I wa it for the police and explain that I was there , he was there , his wife . We
wa ited for the police for 20 minutes . They didn 't come t~at day . So , we left. But the next day I came back to
the park at the same time , because I wanted to meet the pol ice . And the police officer came and she was in the
park for one hour . She inspected ... she checkec how my dog reacted to my command . She moved his
head ... looked at how he was with the dogs ... children ... with other doys . And by the way, the dog is very
su bmiss ive and he doesn 't belong to breeds wh ich can be cons idered dangerous , like pit bulls . I brought two
pictures of the dogs. Do you want to se e them ? Ms . McElwain handed the pictures to Council . Ms . McElwain
said after one hour in the par k with the pol ic e officer ... alter she chec ked everyth ing ... she instru cted me to ba
mo re careful and don 't allow my dog to approach people who don 't like dogs and who don 't want dogs to be
around their children . I certa inly do that. Now , when I am in park , as soon as my dog comes to this playground ,
I put him on the leash . But , my point was ... oh , and I gave the telephone number of th is man .md his wife to the
pol ice officer , so she was going to call them . Our point is ... mine and this couple ... the three of us ... that we fee l
for sure that the dog didn 't show any sign of aggression at all . He didn 't growl , ha didn 't ;,ark , he didn 't jump , he
didn 't run . We were slowly walking near the playground to our car. Because there was a shady area ... three
cars were parked right next to each other. My car ... th is lady parked her car and a cour,le who were there , they
parked the ir car. .. wh ich is why we we re very close to each other. We hea rd and we saw everything . Anyway , I •
just thought after the pol ice officer gave me these instructions ... and I really agree with her that ch;ldren are first
and the y have to be safe and if the ir mothers don 't want dogs to be around them , then we should respect the ir
right to do so. Bui I have been in th is park for si x and a half years and I didn 't see any in cidents and I don 't have
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 17
aggress ive dogs . So , it wasn 't true that my dog was aggress iv e and he wasn 't aggressive at the time of th is
inc ident. I wanted to make another point. Many people ta lked about dog waste in Jason Park . But , if you would
go to Wash ington Park ... which is very restrict ive and people keep the ir dogs on-leashes all the lime ... you just
compare them . II is much more dirty . You can see dog waste there in Wash ington Park everywhere and it is an
on-leas h pa rk . I mean that changes this from off-leash to on-leash . It won 't sol ve the problem of th is dog waste .
If we let the people ... dog owners know how important it is to pick up after dogs ... I think that is the way to du
Iha Thank you .
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
(g) Jean Alspector, a Uttleton residant , said thank you City Council for hearing me today . I am a
member of Englewood Unl eashed and I just have three things I wanted to say . One is ... I thought bringi ng th is
incident to the news , news sta tion s, was rid ic ulous . The reason , number two , that I think it was rid ic ulo as is that
Englewood Unleashed ... our community ... I'm in this community more than my own community ... b, ,n u . '.' tt-ls
incident or incidence to the news med ia and making such a big to-do about it, has put a very negative swing on
Englewood . Anj I thin k th is City has such great things go ing for it , especially with the green issues and th ings
like that. that this was just ke a slap in the face to Englewood . The third thing I would like to see at all the parl.s
that have dogs ... is more code enforcemen t. And if poss ible , In any way , code enforcement that Is not only nine
to five or eight to four ... but maybe someone who works a shift that goes into the even ing . I think enforc ing and
getting ihe bad apples out of the people and the dogr would be a good idea . Thank you very much .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you .
(h) Jill LaPier. an Englewood resident , said I have been attending this park for almost three years
now . I do go almost every day. I have not seen the kind of trouble that they are exp laining to you and I am kind
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of thinking that ii Is out of proportion , because the dogs have been learning to socia lize. They IP.arn to get along
with people , as well as other dogs , which they wouldn't do without this setting . I have taken my dogs to the off-
leash park , down there on Windermere . It didn 't work out as well , because the dogs there are less trained . My
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dogs are a little better trained ... well , they are a lot better trained . So , I am very comfortable with them there at
the park here and I am comfortable taking my dogs to the parks with the other dogs off-lea sh. I have never run
across any fighting between the dogs . I know there have been a couple of dogs that have com e in to the park
that were aggressive and I believe that is because of the owners . And I know several people , on our end of it
here , have asked them to please take their dogs and not come back . I have never seen them back again either.
Also . I want to bring up that if the kids are so afraid of the dogs ... Ms . Griego ... your kids walked in between my
two dogs on their leash, and I just don 't... I didn't see that they were afra id. I never got the impression that the y
were afra id. You never grabbed them and pulled them away from the dogs ... you were righ t there ... but there
was no sign that you were in fear for those kids or that they were afra id and then you walked away . No , I didn 't
see the fear of t~e children . And I know my dogs . They are good dogs . I do keep up after my dogs , where I
can vouch for a lot of people here . I'm at the park a lot. I see people pick up after their dogs a lot. It's here or
there ... there are bad people , there are good peop le. So , it doesn 't matter where we go . or who comes in
next. .. if we are off-leash or on-leash ... there are going to be people who won 't pick up after their dogs . But , I
know that our group here , I can vouch , definitel y try to keep the dogs area and for the kids ... we try to keep the
messes cle an . That is all I have to say .
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
Ma yo r Woodward sa id it Is 3:30 right now and I am going to suggest we take about a five to seven minute break
and come back here and co nt inua with the publ ic commen t.
The meeting recessed at 9:32 p.m.
The meeting reconvened at 9:46 p.m., with all Council members present.
Mayor Woodward said in accordance with our agenda , we are going to go through five more people and then
start with the agenda for the regular meeting and pick up the unscheduled public comment aga in at the end of
the meeting prior to Coun cils ' co mme nts .
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 18
(i) Irma Retoff , an Englewood resident , sa id ~ctually I came with something different prepared and
as I heard people speak tonight I sort of rewrote someth ing . It's a little personal , but I'd lik e to just tell you what I
have seen . And by the way , thank yo u for this chan ce to speak and be heard as an Englewood voter. I have
lived in Eng lewo od for twenty plus ye ars and I have always f~lt that was a privilege . I have a dog a year and a
half old ... the first dog I have had in man y years . For the past nine months , my s• .II dog and I have used Jason
Pa rk . Prior to tak ing him to Jason Park, I too k him to rigorous tra ining and he i, •1.st a little 13 pounder , but I
thought there was an appropriate time , when he should be socialized . We hav, 1llowed the lead of man y
responsible pet owners that I have met at Jason Park . We go there at least ,,··· ,,ly, once a day . We have bflen
there almost every day for the past nine months . And I start work a little later. I take him about 45 minutes to an
hour every day and I get home late at night. I am a nurse . I have kind of odd hours . So , we have our night
routine . I go to the park . I really apprec iate the term that was used earlier tonight , that was ... co-exi st.
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Hopefully , we can find a logical solution to the off-leash park iss ues . It seems like there is a lot of it that is ju st
emot ionall y charged . Some people have spoken and just from what I have heard ... well th is person says th is
and th is person says that. I am trying to speak from my personal self, what I know is true . You know ... going
there every day , I have learned to follow the lead of the people that I have met at the park ... and I have met
some people from Englewood Unleashed . I carry ... my dog gets out of the car ... we have a leash . I always have
a leash ... sometimes he is off-leash , but I am always with that dog . I carry extra bags , in case we find anything
that has been missed . I pick up after other dogs . And interesting ... there is a lot of pointing at the dogs ... I have
seen , over the last nine months , many infractions by the picnickers . I have actually seen three limes where
trucks have pul :cd on to unload food and th ings like that and there have been tire marks for some days , in the
grass . I could have got a camera and I could have taken pictures , but I didn 't realize that this was going to
happen . I just didn't feel it was my bus iness to say anything . A lot of these people have left much trash behind .
And often , very early on a Monday, it is not unusual for my little dog and I, and by the way, he is unleashed
when we are doing this ... ! carry a trash bag around early on Monds y ... sometimes Mondays are bad . We pick
up trash from the picnickers also . This is what I have seen with the lead of the dog owners . We don 't just pie• •
up after our dogs , we pick up the park . There is a real care for the park . I appreci~!• you letting me tell you
personally and I just feel that that was really important fo r me to say ... from my terms . One thing I have noticed
is I see some elderly and handicapped owners who bring their dogs and I see one gentleman who kind of sits
there and his dog stays close to him . But he is not capable of walking . I se~ some owners like th is that wouldn 't
be ab le to take their dogs and walk the ir dogs elsewhere . They are just not in that kind of ptiysical health . I've
gotten to know these people . These people have lived in Englewood for many years , so it would really be a
shame if they lose that. I know in these days of higher taxes and less citizen privileges , I just hope that we can
find a solution to this , because I feel this is one of the privileges to live in Englewood . You know I have lived
here so long, and this is just...and I am almost done ... but I can remember , many years back , when the
Englewood Recreation Center barely passed . My friends and I thought it was important to vote . We came very
close to losing another asset for Englewood . I fe el this is an asset to our town . We people who go there on a
;cgular bas is, when we see people who aren 't ab iding by the rule , I offer them extra bags ... I speak out and I do
it nicely . Just consider that , because , like I sa id, I feel these off-leash parks are really an asset to Englewood .
Thank you for allowing me to speak .
Ma;orWoodward said thank you .
0) Debra McG illi s said I have been a resident of Denver and the area for 15 years . I have been an
Englewood res ident fo r a year and a half. In January , I got a dog and started go ing to Jason Park . At that lime I
felt I became more of a citizen . I would like to address ... because of the people at the park ... I'm now at City
Council meetings , getting involved ... because of the dog ... the off-leash ... I would like tn keep it. I would like to
address the people saying that they see people just unload ing their dogs and sitt ing in the car. On this side of
the room , I can name you every one of the people and ever,' one of the dogs . t would have never had that
opportunity if they were sitting in their cars , letting their dogs run rampant. I would like to see that occur when
us ... myse lf or any of ln ose people are there at the park ... because that would be stopped . That person would
be addressed . As lhe other person sa id, we pick up after the dogs ... and I hav e seen many people address •
people not taking care of their dogs. So , I am just here for Jason Park and sai 19 that yes ... we are resp,1nsible .
We are also responsible for the non-responsible ones . Thank you.
Mayo r Woodward said thank you .
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 19
(k ) Dan Lair , an Englewood resident , said I would like to start with two really quick stories . My point
Is that they don 't really matter in the end . The r,, ·· story is the reason why I use Jason Park . I use Jason Park
because my dog , when she was just a puppy ... we brought her to a park , very much like the Canine Corral , and
there was a big fight right in front of her , right as we were leaving . She got emotionally scarred or something
and now if I ta ke her to a park like tt :at , she j ust gets between my legs and drools and won 't run around . And I
t. ae got to run her around to survive . So , Jas on Par k is very un iq ue in that regard . It is a wonderful place and
it is really nice to have that open , grassy space that isn 't contalr.ed, for dogs like mine . But that is just my story .
The second story is ... r.~p-'ned .... well it is sort of two stories that are related to each other ... tha t hap pened on
different runs that I made . I go up Hudson Street and then run through Belleview Park . One lime some women
were w.ilking their dogs on the sidewal k in front .if me ... on-leash . The dogs defecated on the sidewalk ... l had
to get around that... I watched it happen ... they didn 't pick it up . I had to get around 11...step off the
sidewalk ... sort of alm ost turned my ankle . I second time , running through Belle view Park , I was ki nd of run
off ... th~re was a bunch of kids around and then some guy was coming on his scooter and his dog was off-leash
on the tra il for Bellev iew Park and I had to get off it. No big deal. But lhe point that I am try ing to make is ... that
there ace problems with ~og owners everywhere ... not just in Jason Park ... right? There are problems with
picn ick ers who don 't pick up after themselves ... rig ht? There are people who violate all sorts of codes , all the
time ... ri ght ? So the qu es tion is not... is the problem responsible dog owners? The question is , wh at do we do
with dog owners who are not responsib le ... right? And that leads me to ... from what I heard tonight and what I
heard in the Study Sess ion ... is ask the question ... is that realiy just a big problem ... right? I heard the Ch ief of
Police say that in two years there have been 14 incidents ... right? Well there were 14 ... but there were like 5 of
them that were dogs at-large that they would have had to respond to anyway . Wh ich works out to one incident
about every 50 o, 70 days , depend ing on how you handle that ... right? There is not very mu ch and he wasn 't
concerned about that at all. .. right? I look at the list of parks that are available . Out of the parks that are
ava ilable , we have a number of wonderful parks here in Eng le wood . It is one of the things that attract s me to
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Englewood . There are only three that have off-leash privi leges . Of the parks with playgrounds for children ,
there are 10 . That means there are seven options ei playgrounos for children , far more options than those
where there are dogs who are off-leash . And that leads me to just make a quick question to something that had
come up during the study mee tin g. Which was the que stion of...wel l, does putt ing up a fence ... and I would
encourage you to not pu t up a fence ... I don 't th ink that is the best option ... but if that is a compromise ... so be it.
But would that set up a precedent of policy lat er on down the road ? Arid just on that point , I war.I to bring up a
simple question that relates to the number of oa1<s . Those o:' us who are sitt ing mostly on th is side of the room ,
are not as '<ing to expan1 off-leash privileg e, '·,to these 7 other parks . I agree there should be 7 parks ... ther'.
should b~ more parks where there are r.ot oft•t~ash privil eges , so that there are places where kids and people
who are afra id of dogs , who don 't want to be o,ound dogs , have a place to go and play . They have got
those ... nobody over here is asking to expan d aa~ allow off-leash dogs in every park in this City . We want
Jason Park and Centennial Park \o stay as they are , because they are two places that are reatl y unique , that are
really wonderful and the ~ make an outstanding addition to the City . And one ... on a last quick note ... when I
moved here , several years ago , I was real exc ited to move to the Denver area, before we picked Englewood ,
because we read all the stuff about how Denve r is this great place for dogs ... right...like one of the best dog
cities in the country , which is a total and complete lie . De nver is not a good City for dogs . We happened to
move into ~n glewood and we did n't know anything aboet Jason Park and it was just a blessing that we
happened to buy a house that was just a few bloc ks a,·,~y . I think that is something you have heard several of
us on this side , talking about the sort of attractiveness that this makes for Englewood , in terms of re al eslate . I
would tell you ... l would guarantee th at ,f realtors starting putting things like this off-leash park on the flyers tha t
they set out... you would attract peop le who would be wanting to look to live in Engle·,,ood , because it has these
sort of un ique dog parks that aren 't fenced in ... that are big , open . grassy spaces where active dogs like mine ,
can really get the exercise that they need . I th ;nk there are a lot of advantages and I sympathize with the
problems that people have run in to , but we all. .. like my two , sort of ind ivid ua l stories ... we all run into things that
work and we run into things that don 't wn rk . On the whole thoug h ... when you look at mult iple parks tha t are
available and only a few cases wtiere there have been problems that have escalated to any extent at all ... it
doesn 't seem to be requiring all of this lime and all of this en ~rgy to address , when the t e are other important
• issues that the City should be addressing as well .
Mayor Woodward sa id than k you .
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 20
Mayor Woodward sa id our last one , for now , will be Kristin Hanna .
(I) Krist in Hanna , an Englewood res ident , said I just wanted to point out that I was honored to
become a Colorado res ident four years ago , Since then , I have lived in three different countie s, Those be ing
Denver , Mams and P.rapah oe. I ha ve had dogs throughout the four years that I have liv ed here and I hav,
participaied in dog parks throughout , in all three counties ,,, the ci ti es would be Denver, Thornton , as well as
Englewood . And I j ust want to say that the experience I have had at the dog parks compared to those at other
cities ... the experience I have had here has be~n the best. I th ink that the dog owners pick up more readily and
more frequently than in any of the othe r cities that I have lived in wi th my dogs . And I feel that a lot of the dog
owners do show responsible dog ownership and I would say , compa ;ed to the other count ies , and even their off-
leash dog parks ... that the responsib ility of the dog owners in Englewood is tar supe rior to th~•• I ... I don 't
know .. , ~ecau se a lot of pe ople have lived here ... if the y real ize that there are a lot of respons,~,~ dog owners
here . I originally moved :o Englewood a year ago and , during the previous 3 years that I lived in Colorz 1o, I
found another great dog part< that is called Surrey Ridge . I do n't know if any of you know where .hat is ol ... but ii
Is ha lfway down to Castle Rock . And I wou ld drive all the way dow n to that dog park from my house in Denve r,
as well as Th ornton , so that I would be with other respons ible dog owners who had the ir dogs under control and
also cleaned up ... the waste that was made by their dogs . And since moving to Englewood , I have enjoyed th e
bene1ils of having an unleashed park , at Jason Part<. I was actually driving down to Surrey Ridge , unlll about 6
months ago . So , the other th ing is I really do believe that you are going to have the f , 'blem with dog waste ,
whether you have an on or an off-leash part<. I would like to compare it to the privi leg es of driving thut we all
have . The re are those people that make the bad decis ions of driv ing under th • , 1fluence of alcoho l. With
whatever privileges that people are given, there are go ing to be people who abuse that , but I feel that most of
the dog owners at Jason Part< a~e responsible dog ownerr.. And whether it Is an on -leash or off-leash part<, yo u
are going to have the problem of dog waste , because it is a commun ity facility that people with or without dogs
are available to use , Thank you .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you .
Mayor Woodward sa id at thi s time we are go ing to move on to our reg ular agenda and come ba ck to our list of
guests , afte r Agenda Item 11 (c).
B. Communications, Proclamations and Appointments
(a) A letter from Megan Nordlander indicating her res igna tion from the Englewood Public Lib rary
Board was considered ,
COUNCIL MEMBER PENN MOVED , AND COUNCIL MEMBER JEFFERSON SECONDED , TO ACCEPT THE
RESIGNATION OF Pi,·!:GAN NORDLANDER FROM THE ENGLEWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD.
Mayor Woodward asked if there were any comments or discussion .
Council Member Peno sa id Me gan ,,as L•een a really val uable person to the Library Board . She has some other
things that she Is obligated tc Jo. We never run them off of the Library Boa rd ... lhP.y usually sta y forever . We
will miss her . She did a tremendo us iob fnr us .
Vote results :
Motion carried .
Ayes : Council Members Penn , Mccaslin, Moore, Woudward, Jefferson ,
Wilson , Oakl ey
Nays : None
(b) A resolution ap poi nt ing Jordan Christopher May as an A.;sociate Judge for the City of
Englewood 's Mun icip al Court was considered .
COUNCIL MEMBER WILSON MOVED , AND COUNCIL MEMBER JEFFERSON SECONDED , TO APPROVE
AGENDA ITEM 8 (b) -~ESOLUTION NO . 63 , SERIES OF 2009 .
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 21
RESOLUTION NO . 63 , SERIES OF 2009
A RESOLUTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF JORDAN CHRISTOPHER MAY, AS ASSOCIATE JUDGE FOR THE
CITY OF ENGLEWOOD , COLORADO .
Mayor Woodward asked if there was any discus si on or comments . There was none .
Vote results :
Mot ion carried .
Ayes : Council Members Penn , Mccaslin, Moore , Woodward , Jetfenson ,
Wilson , Oakley
Nays : None
(c) Mayor Woodward sa id the Honorable Judge Vincent Atencio will ~0 ,1 ng in Jordan
Christopher May as an Assoc iate Judge for the City of Englewood 's Mun icipal Co , .Jdge Atencio said than k
ycu Mayor Woodward . Before we begin , let me just say that Associate Judges ar e judges that fill in when the
presiding judge is unable to sit ; be ii for being ill , maybe on vacation , b~ it i ,r a confl ict of interest for someone I
know who is in the courtroom . For example, let's say Tom Munds got a ticket. I certainly wouldn 't want to sit in
judgment of Tom Munds . There was laughter. Mr. May will be a new Assoc iate Judge for us . I have spoken to
him . He Is very excited about having the opportunity to serve the citizens of Englewood . I think he will be a real
asset and I look forward to working with him .
Judge Atencio swore in Jordan Christopher May . There was applause .
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Mayor Woodward said I would ask you Judge Atencio , will Judge May have all dog casen ,,r will you be ...
There was laughter. Judge Atencio replied he was sure asking for that opportunity . T' ,r,· ·•as more laughter.
9. ConHnt Agenda
(a) Approval of Ord inances on First Reading
There were no additional items subm itted fo r approval on first reading . (See Agenda llom 11 .)
COUNCIL MEMBER MOORE MOVED , AND COUNCIL MEMBER McCASLtN SECONDED, TO APPROVE
CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS 9 (b) (I) and (II).
(b) Approval of Ordinances on Second Read ing
(i) ORDINANCE NO . 26 , 8ERIES OF 2009 (C OUNCIL BILL NO . 29 , INTRODUCED BY
COUNCIL MEMBER MOORE )
AN ORDINANCE APPROVING AN INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE BOARD OF
COMMISSIONERS OF ARAPAHOE COUNTY , COLORADO , BY AND THROUGH THE ARAt-'AHOE COUNTY
CLERK AND RECORDER , AND THE CITY OF ENGLEWOOD , COLORADO , TO CONDUCT A
COORDINATED ELECTION ON NOVEMBER 3, 2009 .
(ii) ORDINANCE NO . 27 , SERIES OF 2009 (COUNCIL BI LL NO . 31 , INTRODUCED BY
COUNC IL MEMBER OAKLEY)
AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING AN INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT REGARDING THE
APPLICATION FOR AND ACCEPTANCE OF A 2009 EDWARD BYRN E JUSTICE ASSISTANCE GRANT
• PROGRAM AWARD -2009-G9198 -CO-DJ .
Vote results :
Ayes : Council Members Penn , Mccaslin , Moore, Woodwa rd, Jetfenson ,
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 22
Wi lson , Oakley
Nays : None
Motion carried .
(c) Resolut ions and Motions
There were no resolutions or motions subm itted for approva l.
10. Public Hearing Items
N~ public hearing was scheduled before r.ouncil.
11 , Ordinances , Resolution and Motions
(a) Approval of Ordinances on First r.ea ding
(i) Manager of Recreatio n Hultberg presented a recommendat ion from the Parks and
Recreation Department to adopt a bill for an ordinance authorizing an intergovernmental agreement with
Arapahoe County regarding a 2009 Grant of Arapahoe County Open Srace Program Funds for Centenn ial Park
Ballfield Lighting , Manage r Hultberg said as you know , Council has supported the City 's effort to receive ... the
City 's application for grant fund ing for Centennial Park Ballfieid 's lighting .. , both ballfields al Centennial Park .
And we were successful. We received $167 ,400 .00 and with our match ing funds of $200 ,000 .00 , which came
from the Open Space Shareback Funds , we 'll be able to complete the project this spring and be playing under
the lights . So , staff is recommending that Council approve a bill for an ordinance that authorizes the
inte,~overnmental agreement between the City and Arapahoe County for acceptance of the Centennial Park
Ballfieid lighting grant funds . I'll answer any questions that you have .
Mayor Woodward asked if there were any questions . There were none ,
COUNCIL MEMBER JEFFERSON MOVED, AND COUNCIL MEMBER WILSON SECONDED , TO APPROVE
AGENDA ITEM 11 (a) (I) -COUNCIL BILL NO . 32 .
COUNCIL BILL NO . 32 , INTRODUCED BY COUNCIL MEMBER JE FFERSON
A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING AN "INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT REGARDING 2009
GRANT OF ARAPAHOE COUNTY OPEN SPACE PROGRAM FUNDS PROJECT NAME : CENTENNIAL PARK
BALLFIELD LIG Hi ING ' BETWEEN THE CITY OF ENGLEWOOD , COLORADO AND THE !"OARD OF
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF THE COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE , STATE OF COLORADO .
Mayor Woodward as ked If there , ere an y comments .
Mayor Woodward said I have a comment. I would like le ment io n that , since I have be en the Ma yor over the
last couple of years , and I know it has been prior lo that , i>ecaus& I've seen it... we always get a letter from All
Souls Catholic School . They utilize Brent Mayne Field as part of the Catholic League , The y were , as I recall , a
partner when we put the Bren t Mayne Field Complex together . Their comments are that it is such a well kept
field and complex , and that it is the best in the area , and that in Catholic School League , the teams are always
E •cited to come to Brent Mayne to pla y their games there . So I Just want to compliment t11e Parks and
Recreation Department for the work l~at th ey have done and how they have kept up Bre nt Mayne Field . I don 't
know if ~P.'ople are aware , but the Rockies , over the years , have done a number of fields that hav e, literally,
fa iled , llrent Mayne is not one of them . Brent Mayne is one that the Rockies, and I think, the people of
Englewood shnuld be very proud of , So tha t's my comment.
Vote results :
Ayes :
Nays :
Council "4embers Penn , Mccaslin , Moore , Woodward , Jefferson ,
Wilson , Oakley
None
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Englewood City Council
July 20 200~
Page 23
Moti on carried.
(b) Approva l of Ordinances on Seco nd Rea ➔i ng
(i) Council Bill No . 25 , amend ing Title 16: Un ified Developm ent Co de pert ai ning to a
Med ica l Zone and Ov erlay Dist rict was considered
COUNCIL MEMBER WILSON MOVED , AND COUNCIL MEMBER McCASLIN SECONDED, TO APPROVE
AGENDA ITEM 11 (b) (I) -ORDINANCE NO . 28, SERIES OF 2009 .
ORDINANCE NO . 28, SERIES OF 2009 (COUNCIL BILL NO . 25 , INTRODUCED BY COUNCIL MEMB ER
McCASLIN)
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING TITLE 16, OF THE ENG LEWOOD MUNICIPAL CODE ,1000 PER TAINING TO
THE UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE 2008 CREATING A NEW MEDl ~AL ZONE DISTRICT .
Mayor Woodward as ked if there was any discussion .
Council Member Wil son sa id I do th ink a lot of work went into it and I app reci ate John 's work on it. I th ink it
should be very successful.
Mayor Woodward sa id I want to echo those remarks as wel l. I appreciate John and the Plann ing and Zoning
Commiss ion and your very deta iled work and meetings with the community and stakeholders that were Involved .
This took a lot of time and It Is a very , very good project.
• Mayor Woodward asked If there were any further comments . There were none .
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Vote results :
Motion ca rri ed .
Ayes : Counc il Members Penn , Mccaslin, Moore, Woodward , Jefferson ,
Wilson , Oa kley
Nays : None
(ii) Counc il BIii No . 26 , approv ing an amendment to the City of Englewood 's Officia l
Zon ing Ma p to rezone portions of the Med ical District area was cons idered .
Mayor Woodward said the plan goes back to the area that was discussed ... presented h1 Council Bill No . 25.
COUNCIL MEMBER WILSON MOVED , AND COUNCIL MEMBER McCASLIN ( aCO!~DEn , TO APPROVE
AGENDA ITEM 11 (b) (II) -ORDINANCE NO . 29 , SERIES OF 2009 .
ORDIN ANCE NO . 29 , SERIES OF 2009 (COUNCIL BILL NO . 26, INTRODUCED BY COUNCIL MEMBER
McC ASLIN )
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE "OFFIC IAL ZONE DISTRI CT MAP" OF TH E CITY OF ENGLEWO OD,
COLORADO .
Mayor Woodward sa id aga in, the sam e comments John .
Ma yor Woodward asked if there were any other comments .
Coun cil Member Mcc asl in said ditto. Attend ing \nose mee 1i ng s were ve ry educatio nal and it wa s well
suppo rted . I ap preciate all of yo ur work .
Englowood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 24
Mayor Woodward s id I would say ... at our last mee ti ng I receiv ed some very nice rer,1arks about your full
presentat ion . It was very obv ious that you 'd spent a lot of time and that you were so fam lll a, with this total
project.
Vote results:
Motion carried .
Aye s: Council Members Penn , Mccaslin, Moo re, Woodward , Jeffers on,
Wilson , Oakley
Nays : None
(iii) Council Bill No . 30 , submitting to a vote of the registered electors of the City of
Englewood at the next regularly scheduled mun icipal election a proposed amendm ent to Art icle 111 , Sect ion 22 ,
"Te-ms ," of the Eng lewood Home Rule Charter was cons id ered .
COUNCIL MEMBER McCASLIN MOVED , AND COUNCIL MEMBER PENN SECONDED , TO APPROVE
AGENDA ITEM 11 (b) (Ill) • ORDINANCE NO . 30, SERIES OF 2009.
ORDINANC E NO . 30 , SERIES OF 2009 (COUNCIL BILL NO . 30 . INTRODUCED BY COUNC IL MEMBER
McCASLIN )
AN ORDINANCE SUBMITTING TO A VOTE OF THE REGISTERED ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF
ENGLEWOOD AT THE NEXT SCHEDULED MUNICIPAL ELECTION A PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO
ARTICLE 111 , SECTION 22 , "TERMS ", OF THE ENGLEWOOD HOME RULE CHARTER.
Mayor Woodward as ked if there was any discuss ion .
Council Member Jefferson said I have a quick quest ion actually . I know it says tenms ~,e considered
consecutive under this unless they are at least four years apart. So . lei's say you represented a distr ict , Ii~• I
represent District 1 now , and somebody were to switch and go at-large , would that be considered consec11tive
terms?
City Attorney Brotzm an said that questio n has come up and no , those are not. Council Member Jefferson
repeated no . those are not consecutive . I was just curi ous . I appreciate that. Several Council members sai d
they 're not, Dan ? City Attorney Brotzman sa id no . He sa id if you change districts , those are not
consecutive ... you 'd be runn ing .. if you move , and you meet the qualifica tions for the time limi t, you could
actually run from that district.
Council Member Moore said I thought when we had our redistricting discuss ion several years ag o ... I ju st recall
something at that po int that I thought we'd talk ed to the effects that if a Council member had been, not
accidentally , but end ed up being redistricted , th e effect that it could have on their total term . I'm su rprised by
your answer , but I don 't question ii. II just wasn 't my understanding , so I'm surprised by the answer .
Council Member Jeffe rson sa id ye?h , I was ju st curious after read ing through the change s there , I just not iced
those definitions and I thought abo ,t thr,t.
Counc il Member Moo re sa id whatever you r answer is , whet her you are right or wrong Dan , this doesn't touch
tha t issue . Counc il Member Jeffers on sa id I would agree . It is totally sep arate . City Attorney Brotzman sa id we
actuall1· avoided that issue with this .
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Council Member Moore sai d your honor , I'll comment. I'm n~t. .. I certainly am not affected by this amendment ,
so I'll takP \~e opportunity to acknowledge that se rv ing on Gou.,cil is a learning process . I ce~ai:,iy feel like I am
a lot more knowledgeable after eight years than after one year . I actually th ink it is a good th ing to ask the
citizens if a limit of twelve years in total , as oppo sed to eight years , makes sen · e, hav ing been through that •
learning curve process and knowing what it take s I th ink it is a fair thing to put forwara to the citize ns and I
emphasize that I can make those comments , because it doesn 't impact me , because I'll be done in November.
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 25
Mayor Woodward asked if there were an y other comments . He said I thin k, as I had said on the first read ing on
th is , one of the situations is when you take a term of two years , as in Counc il Member McCaslin 's situation . that
is what happened . He was elected for two years , to fill a term , and then he was electe d for four years , so he 's
look ing at six years . I trJly do believe that it takes a good one to two years ... one year to really get use to
Council and two years to really start understand ing the budget and the differe nt funds , and what goes on with
that , so I support this .
Coun cil Member Jefferson said I'll be voting yes , just to clarify that we are not actually chang ing pol icy here, we
are just putting it forward to the voters to vote on In November , when we are already having an election . It will
be just added to the ballot. So I am ne ither for nor aga inst this policy . I just trust the people 's ability to make
their correct decision for our commur,ity .
[Cler k's Note : Further resea rc h by the City Attorney indicates that th e term lim it provis ion treats at large
representatives and district representatives as similar . If a Counci l member is limited from running in a dist rict ,
they would also be limited from rJnning at large , or vice versa .)
Vote results :
Motion carried .
Ayes : Coun cil Members Penn , Mccaslin , Moore , Woodward , Jefferson ,
Wilson , Oakley
Nays : None
(c) Resolutions and Motions
There were no resolutions or motions subl"litted for approval. .7 Recognition of Unscheduled Public Comment Continued
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(m) Jeremiah Bell , an Englewood resident , said I live about seven houses down from Jason
Park . I have a two-year old and a four-year old dog . We use the dog park at least once , sometimes two times a
day , and that is in the summer , along with the entire winter as well. I have snowshoed down there in bliz:ards
befo re with the dog off-leash . I definitely have not had anyone come down our street asking for a petition to be
sign ed against it eithe r, because everyone on Inca Street owns a dog and everybody on the street that I am
friends with goes to Jason Par k. I don't go down there to socialize or to convene with a group of people . I go
down there to run my dog and I go down there to wear my two-year old out. I don 't allow my dog onto the
playground without be ing on a leash . I'm out throwing a ball to my dog . Most of the time, she is so zeroed In on
the ball that she is not paying attention to anybod y else excep: that ball . My child Is zeroed in on go in g down
that slide as many times as I can . So , please take into cons ideration everyth ing that everybody has said today
and please keep this park available for Englewood residents , because it truly makes this a great place to live
because of the resources that we have . Thank you .
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
(n ) Patrick Griego, an Englewood re side nt. said if Jill is still here to reiterate , or elaborate
on that dog Inc ident with my grandchildren ... my wife didn 't have the kids . I had approached the park with my
grandkids and she 's right... they were leashed . The dogs were leashed togethe r, with a two inch strap , six feel
apart . and they are approaching the kids . They grabbed onto my hands very tightly and the ir feet were going to
be swept out from underneath them . That's when my wife approached and stepped on the leash, and asked her
lo retrieve her dogs . She was going to her car to gel a plastic bag to pick up poop that she wasn 't planning nn
picking up in the park to begin wit h. That was that incident. It wasn't about my wife not be ing there with the
grandkids . I was there . I was the one that took them to the park . Second of all , ;is far as the park and the size
of the park , all of the children that are at the park , with the amount of the dogs that are at the park , I think that's
ju st a disaster getting ready to happen . I am an individual that was $,x years old at a park with one dog , pl ayi ng
hall with a friend , at a picnic , an~ tha t dog attacked me . It knocked me down , tore into my face , and I had to
have reconstructive surgery of rny mouth , and now I have a hemis,iac lal spasm , which I take Botox shot s in the
fac e for . Thal dog hit me so hard that when my head hll the ground . It caused that injury in the ba ck of my nuck .
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 26
Thirdly , as far as people talking about all of the droppings that are in the park , I think that's pretty much all dogs
are going to do that. But that's a lot of dogs to have unleashed with ch ildren and I think , actually and I heard a
few individuals in the restroom , speaking why didn 't we think of Rotolo Park? I think that's your answer . I think
if you make Rotolo Park into a dog park that would fix everything . Everybody would be happy and everybody
could co-exist, like everybody is speaking about . That's pretty much all I have to say .
I :ayer Woodward said thank you .
(o) Valerie Metiguer, a Denver resident , said good even ing Mayor and Council members .
am up here to ask that you respect my pri vacy and not review any video footage . On July 16 , 2009, at 5 p.m., I
was at Jason Park . I was not breaking any laws , any rules . I witnessed a woman walking around videotaping
individuals at the park , including myself . I approached her and I asked her if she was videotaping . I also asked
her to stop videotaping me . She told me she had the right and that the City of Englewood did inform her to use
that , to videotape and use as evidence . I did later file a pol ice report . I called Officer French at Englewood
Police Department, and I filed a suspic ious incident complaint, Case Number 907648 . Thank yo u.
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
(p) Miguel Drake , an Englewood re si dent , said good evening . I live about one-half a bloc k
from Bates-Logan Park , which we all know , used to be a dog park . Prior to it being no longer a dog park , it was
essentially inaccessible to families . There were incidents with dogs running through the park , irresponsible
owners , the soccer field was essentially unusable , and dogs running through games . The spring thaw was
really something to behold . Anyway , we removed the dog park aspect of It and now it is a flourishing park and
we meet people there everyday . My kids all play with everybody else 's kids . All in all , it is a pretly good park .
Now, I like dogs , but I bel ieve that a dog park not a consistent use for the park for kids . I hate to say it and there
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are a lot of really good dogs and a lot of really good responsible owners . that's great and I th ink they ought to •
have a place to go . I have had dogs most of my life . But I believe the uses don 't work out together. So , if you
th ink about a s. ition , for instance , at Jason , where you have dogs essentially out in the open, and it is ,
essentially , unenforceable , because we don 't really have the funds to enforce what ne eds to be enforced there ,
perhaps there needs to be a nigher standard held to them . Perhaps it needs to be fenced in . Perhaps there's
even something like a fee for use aspect like the Rec Center . You could fence an area in down there , like at
Rotolo Park , and any dog that is in there needs to have a collar on ... a tag that costs ten bucks if you are not
fr om Englewood , five if you are . Any dog not wearing it , take It into custody , held in return for fifty bucks . It will
probably pay for all of the maintenance and all of the enforcement that you need to do right there . It's a thought.
It 's really too bad . II seems the dog owners have a great community there , but it doesn't seem to me like they
quite rnalize that that commun ity is driving out another one that was already there . Maybe the community that
was the re wasn't so good . Maybe ii was a bad place to go at night and you didn 't want to be there . But , I think
the prima cy of the children and the primacy of the families ... we have rights in this nation . One of the rights we
have is the right to feel secure with our kids . We don 't particularty have a right to run our dog off-leash .
Colorado Statute states that explicitly . All righ t. Done with that one . Than k you . Cats . Feral cats . Feral cats
kill birds . Loose cats kill birds . There is a pretty good body of info rmation that says capturing, neutering , and
releasing cats is a pretty good way to control feral populations . I'm not entirely sure that Englewoo d has a
problem with it. I know that there are cities that do . My town did when I was a kid . We didn't handle ii in quite
so civil ized a manner . I think that those are the only points I ha ve to make . I would like to thank the Council for
being available and transparent and for be ing a respo ns ive government. Have a good even ing .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you .
(q) Shushawn Touryan , an Englew oo d l'esident , said I apologize for my attire . I rushed
over here after my dance class , not knowing that I would have had plenty of time to change and look much more
professional , so I am sorry . I have been hearing a whole lot abo ut the dogs and not a whole lot about the safety
of our children . I do not understand why we continue to gamble with the safety of our children . It absolutely •
baffie s me as to why we have a no-leash dog park where there 's play equipment. I've never understood that
and I've lived in Englewood now for ten years . I'm five houses down from Jasoo Park and we go there almost
eve ry singl e day . I can only co mment on my experience . My eighteen r 1onth old son and I were at Jason Pa rk .
I was extremely pregna nt at the tim e, and he loves an imals . He chased ,tter ... he saw a group of dogs and
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 27
went running after them . I, of co urse , went waddling after him . The g"up of dogs ... which were 5 to 6 dogs and
were qu ite a herd ... turned around and started charging after him . They <i :d not see m like they were angry or
gro wli ng or anything lil·.e that. but they were big . The y were very large dog r turning and running straight
towards my very sma;r eighteen mon th old son . I was chasing after him. So 11 was a race as to who could get to
my son first. Those dogs would have co mp letely tramp led all over him ... maybs licki ng him , maybe biting him ,
ma ybe runn ing on him. I don 't know . But he would have been hurt . Luckily , I gv: to him first. So , that's all I can
say about Jason Park. I do as k that something be done for it. I also need to give a thumbs up though to Rotolo
Park . My children love Rotolo Park and I love Rotolo Par k too . And maybe that can be the middle ground , but I
as k you also ... there Is also play equipment at Rotolo Pa rk . Put a fe nce around that or something . Let's not
cha nge it to Rotolo Par k and then again gamble with my children and othe rs' children 's lives . Thank you very
much .
Mayor Wood ward said thank you . He sa id that does complete our list of unscheduled gue sts. In stay ing with
the trad ition of Council , if there is anybody else that would like to take the opportunity to present to Council, now
would be the time to come forward . There was no one .
12 . General Discussion
[Clerk 's note : Mayo r Wood ward began General Discussion with Council Members ' Choi ce. Agenda Item 12 (a)
-Mayor's Choice follows the Coun cil Member's comments .]
(b) Counc il Members' Cho ice
(i) Council Member Penn :
1. He said first of all I would like to thank everybody for being here tonight, no matter what side you are on
or how you think it is going to get through . It is very important that you do come out and let us know what is
go ing on in yo ur life and get involved in Englewood . The young lady that spoke abou t...she's getting involved
just by be ing down here. I reall y encourage you ... we have a lot of boards and commissions tha t we always
need members . Please get involved in Eng lewood and maybe you can be jus t as involved as you are with your
dogs ... with some of our boards and comm issions . I really urge yo u to ... there was some great discussion
tonight. .. some very good points and we will have to make so me good decisions in the future . So we'll do that.
2. He said Do ug Cohn came up and gave ... l'd like to make a motion . I'm not going to ma ke a motion for
everythi ng that he requested but I'd like to have you th ink abou t the cost valu es and some of the other things
that Doug was tal ki ng about for Eng lewood Days and then we can have a discussion on that. A couple of the
items will involv e money , but ve ry little .
COUNCIL MEMBER PENN MOVED, AND COUNCIL MEMBER McCASLIN SECONDED, TO APPROVE A
MOTION FOR SOME OF THE ITEMS FOR ENGLEWOOD DAYS INCLUDING : RESERVING THE SHOW
WAGON, BORROWING 32 BARRICADES , PERMISSION TO USE PARKING LOTS ON CITY-OWNED
PROPERTY (LINCOLN, ACOMA , MALLEY), WAIVE $200 .00 TO RESERVE THE RIGHT-OF-WAY ON
LINCOLN, WAIVE THE $150 .00 FOR THE STREET BANNER , WAIVE THE $75.00 PERMIT FEES , AND TO
ALLOW THE USE OF THE CHERREL YN MOTORIZED CAR .
Council Member Penn sa id tha t is m1 motion , at th is time . I th ink we need to , later on, look into some of the
other costs that Doug has presented to us . But I wo uld like th is to go , so at least they could get Englewood
Days going .
Council Member Jefferson said , just to clarify , that Included all of the fee waivers that were requested, but none
of the direct out of pocket costs and some of the staff?
Council Member Penn sa id the on ly fee wa iver that I requested would be the temporary use fee and that would
be it And the $150 .00 ... Council Member Jefferson sa id the right-of-way fee is $200 .00 , $150 .00 for the street
banner , and $75.00 for permit fees for $425 .00 . That's all . So , it 's all the fee waivers , but none of the dire ct out-
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 28
of-pocket costs , correct? And some of the staff time . Is that correct? Council Member Penn said ii does not
includ~ staff time at this time .
Mayor Woodward said unde r number 4 Randy , under the Publ ic Works , that second paragraph , the traffic
control required to close Linco ln Street , will be an out-of-pocket cost of $700.00 for barricades . Council Membe r
Penn said I'm not requesting that at this time . Mayor Woodward said okay .
Mayor Woodward asked if there was any discussion .
Council Member Jefferson said I th ink we need to get behind gett ing Englewood Days back .
Council Member Penn sa id I think ii is an event that will probab ly bring anywhere from probably 8 to 12
thousand people to the City of Englewood and I think it is an opportun ity ... ! know our costs , I know our budget is
very tight and I think as a City Council , we need to look at the rest of them and possibly make a motion two
weeks from now as to which ones you agree to or don 't agree to . I think this will allow the Englewood Days
Committee to go on and get this thing set up so that... at least they have these things reserved . They can
always go out and get other money if we don 't agree to give them other money . Thank you , Joe , for the
support .
Council Member Jefferson said so will we discuss some of these other potential requests this even ing or ...
Council Member Penn sa id probably not this evening . Maybe I th ink we will reserve it for two weeks from today .
I request that all of the City Council Members lr,ok and see what they would like to appropriate to Englewood
Days and what they would not like to . I think that would be a good discussion .
Council Member Jefferson sa id I wonder if there Is enough lead time though , with the event only five weeks
away . If we wa it another two weeks , then .. Council Member Penn sa id I will encourage them to go out and get
publ ic fund ing , or priv ate funding as much as they poss ibly can .
Mayor Woodward asked if t:1ere was any further discuss ion . There was none .
Vote results :
Motion carried .
Aye s: Council Members Penn , Mccaslin , Moore , Woodward , Jefferson ,
Wilson , Oakley
Nays : No ne
(ii) Council Member Mccaslin said I just appreciate everyone showing up and giving your
comments . There Is a lot to take in tonight and It Is go ing to be a tough decis ion but , trust me , we'll look into it
and do the be•t ·ve can . That's all I can say . Thank you so much everyone .
(ii') Council Member Moore :
1. He said twc things . I really do appreciate everyone 's participation in the public proces s. These are long
nigh ts , b;.:t it is aly,, s impressive to see the citize ns take such a ... exp res s suc h an interest in an issue .
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2. He sa id I ne ed to address one other th ing , and I really hate lo keep anyone a min ute later tonight , but
Mr. Gillit prese nted his in terp reta tio n of a set of facts ton ight that cast doubt on my decision proce ss . At Study
Sess ion and at Co uncil, we cove re d Counc il members sitting on boards and commi ss ions. I stand behind what I
said at Study Sess io n. ,1tudy Session is a chance for us lo disc uss Issues rreely , to build an understanding and
to ult imatel y he lp us forrr , opinions . I did voice my opin io ns that night for the sake of facilitating the disc ussion
and learning more , but thnre are seven voice s, all of which I listened to, if I co unt my own anyway . Th is is a
really tou gh issue . The cit zens do not prohibit a Cou ncil member from sitting on a board and commiss ion . It is •
not in the Charter . No Cou,cil, to my knowledge , has proh ib ited ii in the pas t. Certa inly , there is no prohib ition
curren tly in p1ace . So , to r C ,uncil to step in and limit how another Coun cil member services his or her
constit uents ... to me , there is a pretty high bar standard for us to get over . We discussed it at Study Session .
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 29
Desp ite my pers on al op inion about the issue , there was nowhere near the consensus needed for us to impose a
restrict ion on how a Council member performs his or her duties. So , my vote in the Council meeting last week ,
reflected that de ci sion process . It is not a bit inconsistent with what I said at Study Session and those that don't
understand that , don't respect the process wel l enough to realize what went into that. That is all I have.
Mayor Woodward said thank you John.
(iv) Council Member Oakley said I too would like to thank everybody for com ing out tonight
and express ing their feel ings. I would like to make sure that two letters and one email that was in our packet
from the City Manager are included in tonight's discussion and consideration. I made a proposal for a
compromise . I guess that's going to go forward and we'll see if there are any others that might come up . We'll
see where we go from there .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you Wayne .
(v) Council Member Wilson :
1. She said I would like to thank everyone for coming . I so appreciate it and that people take an interest,
which either wa y, how you feel about an issue , that you are willing to come in and talk ab out it and talk to us
about it. It is very , very helpful to .,ee both sides.
2. She said I also wanted to address Rick G ill it...about me turn ing in violations , code violations. That's
exactly what they were . They are people violating the Code. I have never counted how many more I have
turned in . I believe the citizens of Englewood want a clean city. They want it kept up . They want people to pull
their weeds . They want people to not let their property go to terrible disarray , and not mow their grass . So ,
those are the people , that when I'm driving around the City , because I am At-Large, and represent everyone ,
that I want to make sure that everyone is being represented . I don't think that th ere are many people who don't
want a better looking Englewood and who want ii kept up . So , I will continue to do that and that's whether I'm
on Code Enforcement or not. That's my explanation for that.
3. She said I have a reso lution of support .. I'd like to bring about or 'lave someone put in a motion for a
resolution of support of fundraisinp fo r the community garden. This is not for giving any funds toward it. It is for
the people of the commun ity garaen and the task force people to get funding .
(Clerk's note : Th is item, Resolut ion No . 64 , was listed on the Agend a as 12 (b) (i).]
COUNCIL MEMBER WILSON MOVED, AND COUNCIL MEMBER JEFFEl1SON SECONDED, TO APPROVE
RESOLUTION NO. 64, SERIES OF 2~09 ,
RESOLUTION NO . 64, SERIES OF 2009
A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF T HE ENGLEWOOD COMMUNITY GARDEN .
Mayor Woodward , aid that would be Agenda Item 12 b (i), the resolution in support of the Englewood
commun ity garde·,. I would th ink that there ·s ... l certainly support th is and l ... there's a lot of people who ha ve
come out in the .;ommunity that are trul y In support of th is. It is very Intere sting reading some of the th ings , on
public policy, about th is. Community gardens. Roottop gardens . All kinds of stuff, which are very positive . So ,
that would be my comment.
Mayor Woodward asked if there were any other comments.
Mayor Woodward sa id I would also mention that there's r.o ... it's estimated that there's no financ ial impact on the
City for this . Council Member Jefferson said but perhaps a beneficial one . Council Member Penn said maybe a
pos itive one .
Vote results :
Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 30
Motion carried .
Ayes : Council Members Penn , Mccaslin , Moore , Woodward , Jefferson ,
Wilson, Oakley
Nays : None
(vi) Council Member Jefferson :
1. He said I too jusl want to thank everyone for coming ou t tonight and sharing the ir thoughts on Jason
Park and our off-leash polic ies generally . ii seemed that the ~ne thing that really kind of came out, toward the
er.J of a lot of the discuss ion , was Rotolo Park as a possibility. I don 't know if we want to add that. I was just
going to pose this question to Council if we want to add that to our Parks and Rec Commiss ion request , I guess .
Coun ci l Member Mccasli n sa id I did write it down . Council Member Jefferson said what 's that? Council
Member Mccaslin repeated I did write it down . Council Member Jefferson said okay . He said I think that it
seems prudent ju st to, I don 't know , see what they think and perhaps get us some backgro,•nd information on
whether Rotolo was considered al the time or not and what were the pros and cons of that location . Like I th ink
one speaker did point out , I think there also Is a playground there as well , so I'm not sure that ii really
represents ... a real clean solution , but it certainly is worth exploring so that we can provide a response to the
folks who were curious about that as a possibil ity .
2. He said to Doug , I don 't know if he is still here , hopefully we can work with you on supporting
Englewood Days and make sure it comes back a little bit stronger than last year. He said that's all I have .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you Joe .
Council Member Oakley said your Honor. I think a further explanation M my part is forthcoming . The
compromise I brought up was at the Study Session and there may be som,, people in the aud ie nce that were
not at the Study Session . So therefore, very qu ickly , I had proposed a feno:e to separate the north and south
ends of the pa rk, not totally fencing in either the area , just a separation fen ce . It would be about 230-some foot
long . There are pict ures of it floating around . So that's just a clarification .
Mayor Woodward sa id thank you Wayne .
Council Member Moore said we 've asked the Parks and Rec Commiss ion to consider that iss ue , the pol ici es
issues around it and provide the ir input on the matter, plus whatever we've tacked on ton ight.
Mayor Woodward sa id that inclu des the posit ives and th e negatives and how it could effect or may affect the
other parks .
Counc il Member Wil son sa id and Parks and Ree's staff ... Mayor Woodward said and Parks and Ree 's staff is
go ing to make a re cnm mendat io n and do some research on signage , on costs , that sort cl thing , fencing , that
sort of thing ... ioo k at the ir recommendations as far as the placement cl fence .
3. Council Member Jefferson said just as a sid ebar to everybody here , I know after a long nigh t here
tonight disc uss ing these issues , it is kind of frustrat ing tha t we don 't have a resolut ion to our problems right
away but we will be working with the Parks and Rec Comm ission and come back with something relativel y soon .
I ju~! wanted to thank you for your patience . And like I said , I know sometimes you come to these things and
you think , oh , we're going to have a vote or someth ing and resolve the situation ail tonight , but , unfortunately ,
that Is just not how the process works . We 'll get through it relatively qu ick ly though .
Mayor Woodward said thank you .
(a) Mayor's Cho ice
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Englewood City Council
July 20 2009
Page 31
(i ) Mayor Woodward sa id I also would like to thank all of the people that have come from
both sides . I think it is really important that commun ity gets and has a vo ice in the ir City and their commun ity .
One of the more difficult spots here are , up here are , we get to make the decis ion . No matter what decision we
make , we know somebody isn 't go ing to be happy , A group of people will not be happy . We know that for sure .
Possibly two groups won 't be happy . ll's that time when hopefull y, we as leaders , can come forward and
analyze and work with the other citizen groups within the City and come up with a solut ion that best serves the
citizens of Englewood .
(i i) Mayor Woodward sa id I would like to also mention the concerts , the Thursday night
ones coming up . Englewood Parks and Recreation Department presents the Kory Brunson Band , classic blues
and funk and R & B, this coming Thu rsday the 23'". Also , on the 30'", wh ich is Thursday , After Midn ight. a jazz
band and that Is jazz and swing . That is right out here in the piazza , in the little amph itheatre . Bri ng your lawn
cha ir. Hopefull1·, it has stopped raining , maybe , on Thursday nights .
(i ii ) Mayor Woodward sa id I also want to mention that , again, the Englewooo Parks and
Recreation Department is presenting their Englewood Summer Drama Program and this year the presentation is
Ann ie. It will be on Friday , July 31" and Saturday , August 1• at 7:00 p.m., at Englewood High School , and also
on Sunday , August 2"" at 2:00 p.m. This Is truly community theatre . Some of the perfonmances ar, rea lly, really
worth seeing and I would certainly suggest anybody and everybody to attend .
(iv) Mayor Woodward sa id City Manager Sears and I met wi,h a group this morning that is
doing a study for PBS on public space and publ ic health . They had rece ived infonmation about CityCenter
Englewood from a grollp and from a book ... that I wasn 't aware of, I think that we may have discussed it... Mark
Graham , from Community Development , and I, a couple of years ago .,. with a woman . But they came in from
Cal ifom ia and Maryland and did some tap ing of the area . We told them posit ive th ings , the negat ive things, how
it affects health and the changes that this area has gone though ... go ing all the way back to the airplane factory
and the film studio in the early 1900's to the City Park and Cinderella City and the renovat ion into CityCenter
Englewood , and this fonmerly being what was Broadway Southwest and Foleys and now it is called Macy 's,,. b,1t
how it was reconstructed and that's what the special is about. I th ink that they were very impressed . They
spent a lot of time here and it was very positive . That's it.
Mayor Woodward sa id, aga in, I want to stress my thanks for the community coming out and speak ing on th e
issues .
13 . Cl!y Manager's Report
(a) City Manager Sears said I just wanted to say , as the Mayor indicated , there will be a spec ial on
PBS . I th ink it's go ing to be airing a year fro m now on healthy cit ies , of which Belmar and Englewood are going
to be centrally focu sed . That was very positive .
(b ) City Manager Sears sa id Council Member Moore mentioned that he got a note about a tornado.
I talked to Commander Condreay . There are to rnado sightings that are In Sheridan and LakP.wood . It is rain ing
heav ily out there . The warnings last until abou t 11 :15 p.m. So , if you want to hang around unt il 11 :15 p.m. I
don 't know th at an ybody does, but it is a warn , ,g that is out there . Currentl y, it is to the west of Eng lewood.
14 . City Attorney's Report
City Attorney Brotzman did not have an y n,atters to br ing before Coun cil.
' tOURN . The mee ting adjourned at 10:55 p.m .