Fight continues to save beloved Yuba City dog park
YUBA CITY — A dog park in Yuba City was saved after receiving a 90-day eviction notice from Caltrans back in January, but it might still be on the chopping block come September.
Off The Leash dog park on Wild River Drive is on an area that was supposed to be used for a bridge built by Caltrans, but that ship sailed long ago. The park has been there for two decades and is the only dog park in the area.
"I would go out and I would stand in front of Walmart for donations, or the grocery store for donations. I would do things, pass out things, anything just to keep this park," said Yuba City resident Lorraine Mueller.
The park, which is run by volunteers, will see its rent jump starting September 1.
The land is owned by Caltrans and they're amending the lease agreement from $100 to $1,790 a year. The volunteers who maintain the park say they can't afford it.
"Right now, we're doing fundraising to collect the $1,790 so that we have that for the next coming lease if we're here that long," said volunteer Donna Johnston.
A letter from Caltrans received by the dog park states, in part, "we have been directed to rent at fair market value without bias and preferential treatment."
But the rent increase isn't the only problem.
"They're looking at auctioning off the property, but they're looking at auctioning off this entire property from one side of the street all the way to Garden Highway. So it's a rather large piece of property, but in the middle of it is our dog park," Johnston said.
"I meet a lot of people here. I've made friends here," Mueller said.
Dog park volunteers say they're exploring options with Caltrans and Yuba City. They're looking to come up with some sort of monthly payment plan instead of paying the nearly $1,800 up front. They're also hoping to just get the roughly five acres the park sits on as a donation.
"We're happy we have it until August and then month to month and we'll pay whatever it takes to keep it going. But if they have a buyer, we'll just have to see what happens," Robinson said.
Caltrans was not available for an interview for this story.
If you're interested in contributing to the dog park fund, you can head to their website.
