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Lincolnshire Village Board sniffing around dog park idea
Prairie View resident Jerry Counts has his dog Clancy sit Tuesday while at Happy Tails Dog Park in Buffalo Grove. Counts lives about half a mile away from the park. | Buzz Orr~Sun-Times Media
Updated: December 17, 2012 1:08PM
LINCOLNSHIRE — Village Board members conversed last week about building a dog park somewhere in town.
The trustees took no action during their Oct. 8 meeting, but opened up the concept of a fenced, off-leash canine playground.
Board members Mara Grujanac and Liz Brandt said the project could chew up much of the space at any of the existing parks.
“The problem is you need a lot of land,” Grujanac said.
Attorney Adam Simon also said dog parks must meet the accessibility requirements outlined in he Americans with Disabilities Act.
Checks with neighboring communities show the dog park nearest to the hub of Lincolnshire is Happy Tails, located three miles away near Buffalo Grove’s Metra stop. At least four others exist within a nine-mile radius.
Some are free, but others require either a one-day or annual use permit, many of which must be purchased at the operating agency’s office.
How many families in Lincolnshire own dogs is uncertain. Records officials in Village Hall on Friday said the Police Department stopped issuing dog licenses years ago, and not every family would register their pet anyway.
However, the Lake County Health Department issues rabies vaccinations, and keeps track of what community each dog lives in. Carolyn Waller, the health department’s media specialist, on Monday said that 534 dogs were registered in Lincolnshire for either one- or three-year rabies vaccinations in the last 12 months.
What, if anything, Lincolnshire officials may do with the dog park idea is unknown.
Brandt said she believed the village has enough dogs to justify finding a space for them. She told the story of seeing furry friends join their young human companions on the field during baseball games in North Park, but she also noted that designating a space for dog socializing also means taking risks with dog fighting and biting.
“It brings up a whole other issue,” she said.
