Concern has been raised over dogs being walked in Letterkenny’s Bernard McGlinchey Town Park, despite a ban in place.
Donegal County Council has been asked to review its signage in the park to remind dog owners of the rules in place.
Dogs have been banned from the town park since it was opened, however, it appears that the message is not getting through to every visitor.
Cllr Jimmy Kavanagh said he believes people are not ignoring the ban, but some genuinely do not know that they cannot take dogs into the park.
“It will only take one serious incident, one thing to go wrong with a child to have a real problem and damage the reputation of the park,” Cllr Kavanagh told today’s meeting of the Letterkenny-Milford Municipal District.
He added that the park has a large green area with kids running around all the time and that it would be unpleasant if there was dog fouling.
Cllr Kavanagh suggested that more signage and a public information campaign could get the word out.
“I think it’s something we need to nip in the bud before it goes too far and before a child is injured,” he said.
A spokesperson for the council said that a review will be carried out regarding the prominence of these signs and to establish if additional signs are required.
“In addition to this, an assessment will be carried out to assess what other measures will be required to discourage and prevent dog walking in the park. Additional options for dog walking are provided in the town particularly in both the Ballymacool Park and the Glencar Park,” the reply said.
Cllr Michael Mc Bride also spoke on the motion to ask that the council’s bye-laws be enforced more strictly on beaches. From 1st June, dogs are prohibited from Blue Flag areas at 12 of Donegal’s beaches between the hours of 12pm to 7pm. The restriction is in force daily throughout the bathing season until September 15th each year.
