Councillor Minnan-Wong Response ~ Read Below!

Thank you for your email requesting the establishment of an off-leash dog park in Graydon Hall Park.

As an enthusiastic dog owner, I understand the importance of exercising your dog.  A tired dog is a happy dog. Well exercised dogs are healthy.  They are also less prone aggressive behaviour.

I have spent a great deal of time looking at dog parks. In my view, the city should allow off-leash parks where dogs are free to run off leash from sun-down to sun-up. This has been successfully tried in places such as Prospect Park in Brooklyn, New York. Unfortunately, the city of Toronto is not so keen on this idea.

Dog parks sadly are also very controversial. It is common for dog parks to be vigorously opposed when they are near, adjacent or abutting residential homes. 

In this case, there appears to be a number of homes adjacent to the location you are proposing.

If you wished to pursue this matter further, and would like my support, as a first step I would suggest that you approach the affected residents—in this case the homeowners on Olsen and Valentine, and seek their support. Consultation and support from the entire community will be a key element in moving your idea forward.

Thank you for taking the time to write to me, and don't hesitate to contact my office if you wish to discuss this further.

Best regards,                          

Deputy Mayor Denzil Minnan-Wong
Councillor, Ward 16 – Don Valley East
100 Queen Street West, Suite B33
Toronto, Ontario M5H 2N2
416-397-9256

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We will be speaking to the residents of the homes mentioned above to seek their support in the next couple of days. Once we have approval information from the affected residents, we will also send this community petition to Deputy Mayor Denzil Minnan-Wong to see what our next steps are in moving forward with this request.

- Karen