Dear Office of the Governor & Mayor of New York, Esteemed Borough Presidents, Members of New York City Council and NYC Parks Department,

We are petitioning you as dog owners and ask that you consider including city dog parks in the next phase for reopening New York — just as state parks have already done in Brooklyn, Battery Park and along the Hudson.

NYC Parks Department can encourage all visitors to wear masks.

In addition, park staff can determine the capacity of each dog park — that is the number of folks who can safely occupy the space and still socially distance.

That number can be posted and folks can self-monitor the run just as they do with all other dog park rules.

We agree that the mayor’s closure of city dog runs was a prudent step in preventing the spread of the coronavirus. However it is time to ask whether it is still justified to deny New Yorkers precious open space to exercise their dogs now that there is far less of the virus circulating in the five boroughs — and the risk of outdoor transmission on hot summer days is low. 

Most New Yorkers do not have access to private yards or off-leash areas like residents in the rest of the state. Thus we rely heavily on fenced, neighborhood dog runs to safely provide exercise and mental stimulation for our pets.

If adults can stay masked (make it a requirement) and keep their distance, maybe NYC Parks can re-open this desperately needed space. New York state parks have already done so.

Because of this, we kindly ask you to re-open NYC dog parks as soon as possible when the city begins to re-open in June.

Thank you for your time and consideration.