Push for Astoria dog run repairs

From the Daily News:

Local dog owners are pressuring elected leaders and city officials to fix up a beloved but rundown dog park in Astoria.

But they’ve run into resistance from fellow dog owners and the run’s unofficial caretaker. It is also unclear which city agency is responsible for the waterfront property that Bugsy’s Dog Run sits on.

“My goal would be to establish a community-sponsored dog run,” said Dan Cain, 33, of Astoria, who is leading the latest charge to renovate the run.

“The dog park itself is falling into the river,” said Cain, who added he and other dog owners would be willing to chip in for the repairs. “It’s dirty, it’s filthy and it’s unsafe for dogs.”

Cain, who has an eight-pound toy fox terrier, said he’s afraid his dog could get injured in the rocky run, which is not partitioned into small and large dog sections like most city runs.

But he said some dog owners don’t want to make improvements to the run because they fear the city will stop allowing dogs off-leash in the early mornings and late evenings at nearby Astoria Park.

The run’s condition wouldn’t effect off-leash hours since it isn’t on city Parks Department property, an agency official said.

Other dog owners said they worried if enough attention was brought to the poor condition of the run, with its rocky terrain and sloping fences that have gaps in some spots, it would be closed.

Long time readers may recall that QC visited this spot in 2008.