Metro Vancouver is trying to reassure dog owners it has “no plans” to change leash requirements on the popular trails in Pacific Spirit Park.
It comes after the regional district said it heard numerous concerns changes were in the works after a member of the public proposed new rules at a recent Parks Committee meeting.
That proposal, which suggested requiring all dogs to be leashed on all trails south of West 16th Avenue, came from a UBC assistant professor in the Faculty of Medicine, who said she suffered permanent damage to one of her knees when she was charged by a dog in 2023.
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Metro Vancouver park operations supervisor Richard Wallis said that suggestion is not currently on the table, but the district is currently reviewing its dog management program in the wake of a number of public complaints.
“We’re into over a couple hundred bylaw and public comments over the last several years. So it is pretty significant,” he said.
“We are going to be reviewing the incidents that have happened, the public complaints, the comments, bylaw concerns. What we want to do is make sure we are doing the best we can to ensure public safety.”
About two-thirds of Pacific Spirit Park’s some 55 km of mixed-use trails are currently designated as “leash optional.” Along with dog owners, the trails accommodate pedestrians, cyclists and horses.
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Wallis acknowledged there is room for conflict there, given how narrow some of the trails are and the fact the park attracts more than four million visitors a year.
He said the number of dogs visiting the park has also climbed since the COVID-19 pandemic, something he attributed to a wave of new pet ownership.
In some areas, the leash-optional and leash-required trails cross one another, further adding to the possibility for conflict.
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“The impact is that people really need to pay attention as to which trail they are on,” Wallis said.
“I think it’s something that we need to review. Maybe we can make it a little bit simpler.”
Dog owners Global News spoke with in the park on Wednesday appeared cool to the idea of reducing the off-leash areas.
“I think the area that is being proposed as off leas is too small and then you will just be ramming people in other for no reason,” said Jon Ornoy. “Just keep it the way it is.”
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Helen Reeves said the current signage is not clear enough and could be improved.
But she said reducing the number of off-leash trails would just push dog owners out of the park.
“I can totally understand if you are afraid of dogs you don’t always want to have a dog running around, some of them are big, some of them are boisterous,” she said.
“But I would just avoid it, I just wouldn’t come.”
Wallis meanwhile said Metro Vancouver is collecting feedback and will use it to launch a pilot project this spring to try and improve safety and address public concerns.
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
