Dog-Park Advocates Face Many Hurdles

But dog-park enthusiasts, who sat in a tight and vocal cluster at last month's board meeting, urged officials to approve the plan and said the expense would be worthwhile.

"This dog park is a very efficient use of community funds," said Gerald Laporte, a dog owner who lives in nearby Lyon Village.

Another group of residents, mainly people who live near the Clarendon site, want the parcel improved and made into a park but said that too much of the site was being devoted to dogs. An artist's rendering seems to indicate that much more than 50 percent of the space would be dedicated to the dog run.

"The space is not proportioned," Paula Ferdinand said. "Give more space to the human beings."

John Carten, first vice president of the Lyon Village Citizens Association, said the "usable lawn area is too small" and asked that the canine area be reduced.

Dog enthusiasts disagreed. "I would have asked for the entire park for the dogs," Sona Virdi said. "That's a fight for another day."

Dog owners are fervently making their case in Alexandria, too. At a City Council meeting last month, residents pleaded with officials to move forward with plans for a dog park at the Potomac Greens subdivision in Potomac Yard, near the Arlington border.

When the townhouse project was approved in 1999, the developer, Potomac Yard Development, agreed to make site improvements in exchange for permission to build there. The plan included a three-acre dog run, which would be one of the largest dog parks in Northern Virginia, on land owned by the developer.

Since then, dog owners in Del Ray and Potomac Yard have been waiting to learn when they would have access to the site, but no specific provisions were made for access. Some nearby property owners say they fear that the city will use its power of eminent domain to seize land for an access point for pet owners. Council members said no such plan is under consideration but did not say when or whether they intend to find a way for dog owners to gain access to the park.

"We're hearing frustration with the process," said council member Ludwig P. Gaines (D). "It really screams out for some resolution."

Pet owners asked city officials how they intend to resolve the issue.

"Commitments were made, promises were made," said Sandy Modell, founder of Del Ray Dogs. She said it might take several years for the city to find a way to gain access to the site and urged officials to designate another nearby parcel of about one acre for a park.