Source : Perth Now news
Northern suburbs residents say they would welcome a new dog beach to reduce the pressure on Hillarys dog beach, with some concerned the overcrowding could soon become dangerous.
A petition signed by more than 1100 residents was put to the City of Joondalup last month requesting a new off-leash dog exercise area at Burns Beach, in between existing regional dog beaches at Hillarys and Quinns Rocks.
The Northern Suburbs Weekly asked dog-owners walking at Hillarys on Tuesday morning if they thought there was a need for another local dog beach.
“Definitely. North Beach is the next one, and there’s really nothing going further north,” Hillarys resident Jacquie Scott said. “There’s a lot of parks now with no dogs allowed, and I completely get you want to separate children and dogs, but there’s less and less spaces now for dogs to run free.”
She confirmed parking could be a “nightmare” on weekends.
Fellow Hillarys local Gail Underwood has been going to the dog beach for years with her dog Teddy, and she said they have been campaigning for another dog beach option “forever”.
“I’ve been coming to this beach for over 20 years, and especially in summer on the weekends, it’s chaotic,” she said. “I think it’s going to get dangerous; you’ve got big and small dogs, and the horses as well, and there’s just not enough space, really.
“The beach is not long enough because people come from all over. They come from as far as Burns Beach to the beach here … it would be nice for them to go to their local.”
Immediately north of the dog beach is Hillarys Horse Beach, which allows off-leash dogs during designated hours.
Local dad Neil Jones suggested extending the existing dog area to give people and their pets more space.
“Yeah, on a Sunday or a nice day, this place is way too busy,” he said. “I’ve got a little toddler and I don’t like bringing him down because it’s just too busy … I reckon you could even extend this north, there’s no one up there.”
Andy Dowling, a Hillarys dog beach regular who lives in Sorrento, said dog beaches aren’t difficult to maintain, and he thought it would be a good use of land.
“It’s a bit of a no-brainer; if people up that way are looking for one close to home, it absolutely makes sense … I’ve been down here when it’s absolutely crazy, it does get busy at peak times,” he said.
“There’s no shortage of beaches here that don’t allow dogs, so I think it’s a good use of land.”
It wasn’t just people living in Hillarys venting their frustrations. Lisa Wylie was out for a walk with her dog Mia and said they regularly travel all the way from Nollamara.
“We’ve got one here, and one on the other side of Scarborough,” she said.
“I’ve got to come from Nollamara just to take my dog to the beach, it’s a hassle. Look how much beach you’ve got; when you come here it’s so crowded, that’s why I come on a Tuesday.
“The horse beach is connected to this one as well … you’d think you could even turn (Burns Beach) into a horse/dog beach, and have this as a whole dog beach.”
Carolina Vermeijs is in a similar spot, driving up from Bassendean on the quieter days to avoid the canine chaos.
“It gets busy especially over the weekend, it could be nice to have another dog beach more north,” she said.
