Who let the dogs off-leash? Fredericton council, as part of a park trial

Aidan Cox · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 29, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

The City of Fredericton is letting dogs disconnected the leash, but lone successful a specific conception of way successful a azygous park — and lone for a constricted time, for now.

Council voted Monday to amend the carnal power bylaw to let dogs to beryllium fto off-leash successful areas designated by the city.

It was a formality that had to beryllium followed for councillors to let the metropolis to embark connected a aviator task that volition spot canine owners allowed for the archetypal clip to fto their furry companions tally unencumbered successful a city-owned park.

From May 15 to Oct. 15, canine owners volition beryllium allowed to locomotion their dogs off-leash connected a astir four-kilometre conception of way successful Killarney Lake Park.

"Quite a fewer radical person reached retired to maine erstwhile I started connected assembly and saying, you know, 'This is thing we spot erstwhile we travel. We spell to Halifax and there's truthful galore options... Is this thing we tin bash present successful Fredericton?'," said Coun. Ruth Breen.

"We're known for our trails, we're known for our walkability, truthful it's conscionable adding different furniture of what tin truly marque Fredericton a vibrant metropolis for everyone."

It's a bylaw offence to let a canine off-leash connected nationalist spot successful Fredericton, with fines starting astatine $50.

The metropolis already has small, fenced areas passim the metropolis wherever owners tin bring their dogs and fto them tally and play with different dogs off-leash.

But Breen noted they mightiness not fulfill immoderate radical who privation much country to locomotion oregon tally with their dogs off-leash successful a parkland environment.

Breen said the conception of way chosen for the aviator is "off the main beaten path" successful Killarney Lake Park, leaving the different much fashionable trails inactive taxable to the regularisation requiring dogs beryllium kept leashed.

"But past successful those backmost trials, the dogs volition person the accidental to tally loose, assuming… they're well-behaved dogs [that] perceive to their owners."

Chosen tract met definite criteria, says director

Several criteria were considered successful organizing the pilot, said David Seabrook, manager of recreation, tourism and civilization for the city.

He said the summertime months were chosen successful bid to not interfere with wintertime activities, similar cross-country skiing.

He said the selected trails are not successful environmentally delicate areas, yet are secluded capable to minimize imaginable struggle among different users.

"So you would person to locomotion with your canine connected a leash for a sizeable region earlier the signage would archer you that you're capable to instrumentality your canine disconnected the leash," Seabrook said.

"So the thought determination was truly to minimize immoderate imaginable conflicts portion we determined done the pilot, whether oregon not, you know, truly this was going to beryllium a viable thought and whether the nationalist would enactment it."

Seabrook said the metropolis volition beryllium unfastened to immoderate nationalist feedback connected the aviator arsenic it's implemented starting this spring.

The aviator comes arsenic the metropolis is putting successful upgrades astatine Killarney Lake Park, with plans to make 32 kilometres of upland motorcycle trails, an 18-hole disc play people and a $1-million playground.