New DOGPAW president hopeful for off-leash parks’ future

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There’s good news for those who enjoy the four off-leash dog parks ran by local nonprofit DOGPAW — the facilities across Clark County will stay open for at least another year.

“I do not see the parks shutting down before November of next year,” Recently-appointed DOGPAW president Eileen Magill Cervantes said in an interview with The Reflector Oct. 31. She assumed the role Oct. 19 and has been a member of the group for about two-and-a-half years prior, having moved to Clark County from California in Nov. 2015. 

Currently an author and editor, Cervantes spent 30 years with the city of Santa Clara, California, where, among other things,  she managed the safety division for the city-owned electric activity. She said that leading a nonprofit has its differences from her previous job, but she has key experiences managing a multi-million-dollar budget, much more than the roughly $120,000 in expenses DOGPAW had in 2017. 

“As soon as I found the dog parks I was absolutely smitten,” Cervantes. She and Flynn, her 8-year-old Kooikerhondje, are regulars at Ike Memorial Dog Park in West Minnehaha.

 

Problems in the park 

Cervantes’ interest in the position was spurred by news that the parks could potentially shut down by the end of the year. Letters dated June 7 were sent to both Clark County and the city of Vancouver by then-president Mark Watson, who stepped down from the role due to health reasons.

In the letters, Watson laid out the challenges the group faced in maintaining the parks, which although located on county land are entirely operated by DOGPAW. Chief concerns laid out are related to safety and enforcement of park rules, with Watson urging both local governments to commit more resources for officers to patrol the parks.

Since her appointment, much of Cervantes’ time has been focused on getting up to speed with all the documentation and history of the group, which was founded in 2004. Even with sifting through all the paperwork, she still makes a point to get out to the parks and talk with dog owners. 

Cervantes said that talks with Vancouver and Clark County on support had been going “quite well.” Although they didn’t have a concrete plan at that point — such as 40 hours a week of officer resources suggested by Watson — Cervantes said discussions were ongoing about what kind of support the municipalities would provide.

As it currently stands, DOGPAW doesn’t have the power to issue citations on violations at the parks, which has proven to be a major roadblock when enforcing park rules. 

One of Cervantes’ objectives in the new role is to take a look at current county code regarding animals and parks in order to see where changes could be made for better enforcement. 

Cervantes touched on the major issues the parks face regarding patron behavior.

Bringing in animals that haven’t been spayed or neutered is a big one. Regardless of the dog’s aggression, an unaltered animal would still give off pheromones that would affect the other animals present, Cervantes said. 



Cervantes also said bringing small children to the park has been problematic, given the potential for them to be knocked down by dogs at play. 

“For a lot of dogs that’s someone to chase,” she said. 

According to Cervantes, children will bring in bicycles, or sleds during the winter months. This misuse of the park and the subsequent squealing and running around only encourages rambunctious canine behavior.

“This is the only place I can take my dog and let him run off-leash,” she said. “There are a lot of hills and a lot of parks everywhere else that other people, that children can play.”

Leadership shakeup

and refocus 

DOGPAW had more than 1,100 members at the end of 2017 with 5,000 dogs visiting the park weekly, according to an annual report. 

Cervantes’ appointment also comes with other changes with the group, including adding Rick SantAngelo as volunteer coordinator and the move of former president Watson to park operations director. She said DOGPAW was still looking for a fundraising director. 

Though the parks wouldn’t be closing at the end of 2018, Cervantes stressed that finances for DOGPAW were still a major focus for her new role. 

Cervantes noted fundraising opportunities in partnerships with Fred Meyer and Amazon, which allow for rewards or portions of purchases to go to DOGPAW.

“It’s only a few cents per person, but holy moly can that add up,” she said. 

Another key focus for Cervantes was on communication and accountability, “letting people know where we are, how we stand and getting the message out there that these parks are important.”

“I think that with those things (communication and accountability), financing is going to come in,” she said.