BY BEN BRACHFELD
They’re getting a ruff deal!
Fort Greene’s furry friends
are being locked out of an “unoffi
cial” dog run on Clermont
Avenue, and now their owners
are asking the city to legitimize
the small, fenced-in area used
for decades by local doggos.
Human and canine community
members gathered at
the makeshift pup run near PS
20 on June 21 to call on the city
to reopen the space and, hopefully,
make it an offi cial Parks
Department dog park.
The rally was organized by
Fort Greene resident Charles
Wallace, who says he was with
his dog, Kylo, and fellow resident
Natasha Camhi and her
dog, Arlo, when he saw a Parks
Department employee padlocking
the run for reasons unknown
last month.
The pair claims it’s not the
fi rst time the area has been
locked up, but that communication
with the city has been diffi
cult, and they’ve still not been
able to fi gure out exactly why
it was closed. In addition to the
padlock, the city also affi xed a
sign to the gate barring pets
from the space.
The dog run is a small, elongated
GET BACK
COURIER L 12 IFE, JUNE 25-JULY 1, 2021
patch of land without dog
amenities, but residents say it’s
been used by the local pooch
population for years, at least
since the 1990s as far as Wallace
is aware. Those who use
the space say they also maintain
it since the Parks Department
doesn’t, and are willing to
continue to do so.
“We’re so willing to take
care of this space ourselves,”
said Camhi. “We don’t need a
lot of money from the city. We
just want to have it open and
have it be a safe space. We have
over 300 people who are willing
to help out. It’d be very easy to
organize. We have volunteer
corps ideas, maintenance we
need to do. We already have
a bench, bowls, it would be so
easy to set up.”
It is, however, missing some
key features of a typical dog
run, such as a double-fenced entrance
to prevent puppers from
escaping. The residents say
they are willing to work with
the Parks Department to bring
the space up to code.
“There’s hundreds of people
who use this thing who
are all willing to put some
time and effort in,” Wallace
told Brooklyn Paper. “We’re
just trying to figure out what
Parks need from us.”
A spokesperson for the
Parks Department did not
respond to a request for comment.
Those who attended Monday’s
rally aren’t alone — residents
have started an online
petition to save the dog run
that, so far, has garnered over
350 signatures.
The loss of the dog run has
been hard on both human
and dog residents. Some have
started using nearby Fort
Greene Park during off-leash
hours, but those are only early
in the morning or late at night,
and residents don’t feel the
same freedom there as they do
within the fenced-in area.
“He’s really suffering,” said
Wallace, referring to his pup,
Kylo. “We used to come here
every night, right before dinner
at 5:30. He drags me here,
they love it, and they’ve got all
their friends here.”
For now, four-legged Fort
Greeners will have to make
do with other options, but they
and their humans are hoping
for a productive relationship
with the city moving forward.
“We want to cooperate with
the city,” said Camhi. “It doesn’t
need to be antagonistic at all.”
The unoffi cial Fort Greene dog run,
padlocked and affi xed with a “no
pets” sign. Photo by Ben Brachfeld
Arlo poses in front of the padlocked “pup run” at Clermont Avenue.
Photo by Ben Brachfeld
It’s a dog-gone shame!
Fort Greeners and their pups rally to save local dog run
facts. vax.
COVID-19 vaccines are safe,
effective and will help us all get
back to the people and activities
we have missed.
TO FRIENDS
Bill de Blasio
Mayor
Dave A. Chokshi, MD, MSc
Health Commissioner
To get the facts about COVID-19 vaccines, visit nyc.gov/covidvaccine.
Visit nyc.gov/vaccinefi nder or call 877-VAX-4NYC (877-829-4692)
to fi nd a vaccination site to get your COVID-19 vaccine.
/covidvaccine
/vaccinefi