Few topics get our readers’ tongues wagging more than dog stories.
Recent coverage of a text amendment to allow fenced-in areas at town parks drew dozens of comments. We won’t rehash them here.
But one came in after all the others. Most readers missed it.
It was not about whether a dog run is a good idea or not. Nor did it concern safety, aggressive dogs, location or anything else.
It was much more basic. Why, the writer asked, do we need a dog park of any kind? He said:
More than 90% of Westport dwelling units are single family homes. With yards. In all our time there, across 3 homes, all with dogs, not once did we take our dog to the park. We would take our Golden to the beach off season so she could jump in the waves, otherwise they were each pretty happy in their own yards and going on the occasional neighborhood walk.
Winslow Park
Then he doubled down, tossing another town amenity into the mix:
I’ll admit I also don’t understand the draw of the community garden. Each of our 3 homes had gardens, some more successful than others based on the quality of the fencing.
I live on the Upper West Side now so I get the allure of dog parks and community gardens where none of us have yards, but in the 06880 where 90%+ can do this all at home, what’s the need for dedicated public space?
Inadvertently, he answered his own question. A dog park and garden are important for basset hounds and tomatoes, sure.
But they are also about people. About society. About — and the word is right there, in the name of the garden — “community.”
Gardening can be a satisfying, solitary endeavor. But the gardeners formed a real community at Long Lots.
They educated and learned from each other. They admired each other’s plots. They shared the “fruits” of their labors (and vegetables and flowers), socializing together and watching birds and sunsets. They cheered each other’s milestones, and supported each other through personal struggles.
Westport Community Garden (Photo/Lou Weinberg)
Similarly, Winslow Park is a place where dog owners and dogs can gather together.
Humans and canines need companionship (and not just of their own kind — dogs meet other people, and vice versa).
As with the community garden, friendships form across generations. And if you want to be alone — but not feel alone — there’s a place for you.
Some people think a downside of suburbia is that people keep to themselves too much, in their own homes and yards. Community gardens and parks are antidotes to that.
But those are not the only spaces we gather, even if we don’t have to.
Many Westporters have backyard pools. All of us have access to Long Island Sound. Yet we swim at the YMCA and Longshore — sharing lanes and locker rooms.
Aquafit class, at the Westport Weston Family YMCA.
We exercise our bodies, of course. But we also exercise our social muscles.
We can all read or study alone. So why do it at the Westport Library? There is comfort in being surrounded by others — even if we don’t know who they are.
It doesn’t hurt either that — although we can make our own coffee — we can also take a break in the Library Café.
Two of the most popular events “06880” sponsors are the downtown winter and Soundview Avenue summer strolls.
What propels someone to leave a warm home in December, or a backyard pool in July, to walk up and down the street?
Music and food, yes. But the real attraction is other people.
Outdoor dining: more social than eating at home.
I could go on and on. We can worship at home, but we go to a church, synagogue or mosque.
We can eat at home, but we take pride in our many restaurants. And the buzz and vibe that is different — but present — in each.
You — and hopefully the “06880” commenter — get the point.
The question is not whether we “need” a dog park or community garden.
It’s what kind of town, or people, would we be without them?
(“06880” covers every aspect of Westport life — from every angle too. If you enjoy stories like this — or any other feature on this hyper-local blog — please click here to support our work. Thanks!)
Yes, Dan I totally agree. It’s about community camaraderie and being part of a group with a common interest i.e the artist collective of Westport. The Westportwomensclub. The library is one of the greatest examples. To name a few …. That’s what’s great about this town something for everyone.
Maybe >90% (reference?) of our dwelling units are single family homes with yards (not all), or pools (definitely not all), the point misses the fact that the 90% is inevitably shrinking with the inexorable spread of 8-30g-inspired apartments, which are mostly devoid of such amenities.
Has anyone noticed more deer? more bobcats ? more coyotes? more Fox ? more squirrel ? more chipmunks? Maybe we need a deer park ?
I love the many communities we have in Westport, no matter your status or size of your homestead.
And no, not everyone actually owns property. Not everyone has property suitable for gardening or dog play. Those that do choose to participate in the community of public places for like minds: music lovers, book nerds, gardeners, dog lovers, bridge players, artists, young people, old people, lonely people.
Gardens need a lot of sun and flat ground, and fences to keep critters at bay. Dogs need room to run. Apartments and condos have neither. Some home properties are in deep shade all day. Some are in areas that are not safe for dogs to run. Some people live alone. So the thought that we all should make our own whatever is ill-conceived.
He definitely is missing the point, I agree with you Dan, we use the park and trails every single day, usually more than once…I’m grateful for Winslow Park every single visit!
I should have added more context when I posed those observations…
For all of my 17 years as a working adult Westporter, pre COVID (there’s more flexibility now) like many of the estimated 3000 daily train riders, I commuted to Manhattan. Unless I was traveling. I can count on one hand the number of weekdays I “worked from home” during that time period, as can a bunch of people you probably rarely see, who live in your town.
For a third of the year, many of us left town in the dark, and returned in the dark. We made our friends on the train platform, some of which we’d commute with for decades. We usually sat in the same seats, and if we took a different train our whole day was thrown off. There’s a whole subculture, one of our fellow riders even started writing books about it – https://www.amazon.com/Track-Diana-Jeffries-Mystery-Mysteries/dp/1495965511.
We raced home during the week when we could to see our kids participate in their activities, but it was rare, especially if you had a big job. Some of us coached our kids on the sidelines wearing our suits. We missed a lot, but we wouldn’t change a thing. It’s a worthy sacrifice so our kids can grow up in the 06880.
So at least for me, and I suspect many others, there was no time for dog parks and community gardens. We have dog parks and gardens at home. Hopefully you get the joke.
Our terrier loves interacting with other dogs and gets some serious exercise chasing at our dog park while residents can relax and interact among themselves which is great. I made some lifetime friends walking my dogs at Wakeman. But Winslow poses the threat of dogs running into the Post Road. A good friend lost his lab that way. But your commentator misses the real point. A “Bark Park” is as much for the dog owners as the dogs.
Such an odd thing to debate. Dogs desperately need other dogs to interact with plus new things to smell, and I don’t want my dog to get lost. This should be the world’s shortest discussion.
That kind of anti-communitarian expression represents the worst of Westport. “We got ours and screw anyone who doesn’t have as much as me.”
Why do we have a town golf course? Or tennis courts? Or activity facilities at Compo? Why aren’t our schools exclusively funded by the parents of children?
Selfish twit. Probably a libertarian.
We have yards, but we still have parks; kitchens, but still restaurants; pools, but still Longshore and the YMCA; and books at home, but still the Library. A fenced dog area is no different.
Emme Dorfman and I are not proposing to eliminate the existing off-leash area or change Winslow Park’s character. Our text amendment simply allows Westport to consider two fenced dog play areas within the 30-acre park while preserving current leashed and off-leash opportunities.
Importantly, a text amendment does not build a dog park. It keeps the conversation open. Any proposal would still require discussion of location, size, design, cost, management and community impact.
A fenced area offers what a backyard cannot: dogs socializing, neighbors connecting, friendships forming across generations, and a safe, accountable setting.
Not every resident uses every field, playground, garden, pool or tennis court. Universal use has never been the standard for community value.
The question is not, “Why do we need this if people have yards?” It is, “Does this provide another safe, responsible way for residents to enjoy their community together?”
I believe it does.
Thanks Dan! Hit the nail on the head.
My idea of walking my dog is opening the back door and telling her to go have fun. But she differs. She likes to run and sniff other dog’s butts. Wakeman used to be great until they banned us tax payers until 4:00 p.m., apparently afraid that someone would attack a gym class? After 4:00 p.m., it is all Staples sports teams who dominate the fields which was not the intention of the Wakeman grant. Whatever, same ole Westport: residents have been arguing amongst ourselves on every issue since I arrived in 1953!
Very well said! The key is socialization for all in open spaces.
My back is aching, my neck is sore and my wife is whining at me to clean the shower/tile surround when I’m done. I don’t have enough strength to do it myself. Is there anyone who can help me? I’ll pay all expenses just to get her off my back. However, make sure they take Medicare (for all it’s worth). Cleaning up dog poop in my and the neighbors’ yard is a drag (here in Ohio we don’t have dog parks (we do have theme parks). I miss Westport.
Columbus has a super dog park. Need some cheese with that whine, bro?
Community- that’s why we are all here. When I had to speak at the United Nations I summed it up with this thought. “When I ask myself the existential question, why are we all here?, the only answer that consistantly comes back to me is:
“For Each Other”.