Protective puppy park pledge

AREA Liberal candidates standing at the upcoming state election have pledged $60,000 for fenced off dog parks in Buninyong and Alfredton.

If successful in November the plan would see money provided to the City of Ballarat to undertake the work.

“We believe that this is going to be a really positive move for our community and not only provide a safe space for our dogs to exercise off leash but also a great opportunity for the owners to socialize as well,” Liberal candidate for Wendouree, Amy Johnson said.

With about 21,000 registered pets in the municipality, many of which are dogs, Ms Amy Johnson said there was a need for a fenced off facilities in the region.

“These [fenced off dog parks] provide an environment where dog owners can exercise their pets off leash knowing that they potentially won’t be able to get away and run out onto busy roads,” she said.

Should the proposed parks get up it would mean three such facilities in the Ballarat region, with existing fenced off area on Dowling Street.

The election promise comes after a significant community push for more such parks in the region.

“The community has been hounding me for this, out at Buninyong particularly,” Liberal candidate for Buninyong Andrew Kilmartin said.

“I’ve been door knocking a lot here and many families are just looking for a safe space where they can take their dog for a walk, with fences and stuff, where they can let it off the leash and let it run around.

“There’s lots of people who have been crying out for that.”

The locations of the proposed fenced off dog parks are yet to be determined.

Both Mr Kilmartin and Ms Johnson said the final locations would be decided by the local council after discussions with residents.

“We’ll be working with the community to essentially say, ‘where to you guys want it’,” Mr Kilmartin said.

Labor candidate for Buninyong, Michaela Settle, wouldn’t comment on the proposed dog parks directly but did say she supported improvements in animal welfare.

“I’ll be making lots of announcements over the next few months on a variety of things,” she said.

“Obviously I think that dogs are a really important part of our families, and health and wellbeing. The Labor government has done an enormous amount of work in animal welfare and we’ll continue to do so.

“What I can guarantee is that we won’t be reversing the puppy farm legislation.”