Spoke with White Plains Parks & Rec Commissioner

The White Plains Parks & Rec deputy commissioner (Fran C.) returned my call. The Parks & Rec commissioner (Wayne B.) was also on the call.

I asked them how long and why the 'No Dogs' rule has been in place. The deputy commissioner said she has been in her position for more than 20 years, and the rule has been in effect at least that long.

Fran also stated the Parks & Rec department gets complaints from people who don't want dogs in the park because their children are afraid of dogs.

I asked if they had data in terms of how many White Plains residents are pet parents but they did not have any information.

I said I had researched the law and found that the ordinance that prohibits dogs includes a section that essentially says leashed dogs are allowed when walking through a park. The commissioner said he was not aware of the ordinance. 

I also mentioned there is a city worker who is forcefully accosting pet parents from his car, telling us dogs are not allowed. He yelled at me from his car while I was walking my leashed dog on a walkway through a park, which is allowed (see city ordinance details below) I said White Plains pet parents enjoy living here and they feel that this city worker is creating a hostile environment for us when we're just out walking our dogs in a manner that is allowed by the ordinance. The commissioner said he would speak to city workers about this.

I brought up that in NYC, dogs are allowed in parks and there are also  state public health and New York city health codes and fines for people who don't leash their dogs, and who don't clean up after their pets, and asked why this wasn't the case in White Plains. There was no clear answer.

I asked how a group of us might go about changing the law. Fran said I'd have to research that. She also said she didn't think dogs should be in parks. I said it's not a matter of her personal preference, but rather a matter of the needs and preferences of residents who are pet parents. The commissioner said the first Monday of every month there is a 'Citizens to be Heard' meeting before the White Plains Council Meeting and we can request to get on the agenda. So this will be our next step.

The signs in the parks are misleading, because Ordinance Sec. 6-2-10 states leashed dogs are allowed when traversing parks. The wording is negative, but leashed dogs are allowed when walking through a park. There is a link to the city ordinances website on my previous update but I'm also including a highlighted screen shot in this update.

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