Please consider keeping this trail as off-leash. There are very limited areas in the westshore that allow dogs to run off-leash, and everyone that uses the trail with their dogs off leash are very respectful and courteous. In majority of instances, when someone is approaching, people will leash their dogs or ask if it is okay to have them off leash. Please do not make this area an on-leash only trail.

Changing the leash optional options for these parks is a backwards step. Creating more restrictions for "one side" just divides further.

I strongly urge the park authority to reconsider the proposed restriction of dogs on the leash in Latoria Creek Park. Such a restriction would be unfair, unnecessary, and would detract from the overall enjoyment of the park for both dogs and their owners.

Converting the trail into a on-leash only would be a significant loss for dogs and their owners who enjoy hiking and exploring the great outdoors together. Off-leash trails provide a unique opportunity for dogs to experience the freedom of running and playing in natural settings, which can contribute to their physical and mental well-being.

On the other hand, an on-leash trail would constrain dogs and limit their ability to explore, sniff, and run. This could result in pent-up energy and frustration, leading to negative behavioral changes such as anxiety, aggression, and even physical health problems.

There are no good off-leash dog park options in Colwood. The Latoria Creek Park trail was one of the only trails that many human and dog residents of Colwood enjoyed.

I think removing off-leash areas at a time when the pet dog population is ever increasing is counter-intuitive and will only create new problems.

Latoria Creek park has large trails with lots of space and no playground. There is no need to have dogs on leash. It’s within a forest giving dogs and their families space to be free in nature. Families and their pets need more space to be allowed to roam free. Don’t take away a responsible pet owners ability to enjoy this beautiful park.

Transparency of where and how information was gathered and statistically interpreted is appreciated. I have walked my dog in Latoria Creek Park regularly since moving here without incident.

I was just reading about this in the mailout I received this week and was dismayed to find that there is consideration of making Havenwood and Latoria Creek Park On-Leash. These are big parks that are not close to development and are ideal as off-leash parks. I am not sure where you were gathering feedback, when I am in those parks I see so many dogs and their owners enjoying the parks and they are not bothering anyone or out of control. I think the feedback you were getting might have been from people that do not use the parks themselves are maybe are even familiar with them? I am not a dog owner currently but this would be a huge drawback even for me. Please reconsider this and let all people and animals use these parks freely.

I don't understand. Latoria Creek is Colwood's premier dog-walking destination. I come here frequently; rarely do I see non-dog walkers, and even more rarely do I see dogs behaving in an un-neighbourly way. Turning the park into an on-leash area would be a significant degradation of amenities in the city and would be an extremely disappointing decision. Given Colwood's dire lack of off-leash facilities, such a decision would only further overcrowd existing parks, many of which are not isolated from urbanized areas and pose a heightened risk to road, child and pet safety.

Currently, the council supplies dog-bags at both ends of Latoria Park, clearly demonstrating that the park is intended and encouraged to be an enjoyable dog-walking experience. To turn your back on this in favour of a couple of non-user survey responses is silly.

With all the other proposed changes to Latoria Park there will be plenty of space to accommodate dog and non-dog walkers. I see no reason why all park users cannot continue to respectfully coexist as they have successfully done so previously.

Off-leash dogs should not be banned at Latoria Park.

Very disappointed to see this park become a non offleash park. Those of us that are responsible dog/pet owners already have limited off leash options and this park is regularly used by dog friendly families. I see more people on these trails with dogs than people without. Dogs that need to be leashed are and the ones offleash I've never had an issue with. I really hope council reconsiders and rescinds their thoughts on banning offleash dogs in this area

I do not understand what the problem is with the status quo. I have never seen a problem between dogs and people here. Everyone is having a good time. Dogs that should be leashed are, and dogs that are well behaved and obedient are allowed to be off leash. Further, most of the time we see neither man nor beast, so the park is not so crowded that we need additional regulations.

Responsible dog owners control their dogs on and off lead but we are sorely lacking off-lead areas. In all the time I’ve been in the park I have yet to have a bad interaction with a dog owner. I think you need to have places to work on obedience with your dogs and these are becoming more and more scarce. Dog owners don’t come out to parks once in a while they come every day and sometimes twice a day so they have the most to lose. I believe it’s important to protect these natural areas but ultimately they are to be enjoyed by people, and their pets. I think there are already bylaws in place to deal with problem dogs/owners but please don’t penalize the well- behaved dogs/owners by going forward with an off-leash ban.

Please do not take away the off leash accessibility. We need more off leash areas, not less

Very thorough park management plan, with lots of thoughtful additions, but this park is a dog walking park.

I walk my pup every evening here and very rarely see anyone without a dog. I do not believe only 38% of people use the park to walk thier dogs.

The terrain of steep trails & endless staircases surrounded by forest is what makes this park so attractive for off leash dog walks.

Latoria Creek park is a wonderful space that my dog and I enjoy walking in. Fantastic being off-leash as it gives him the exercise and stimulation he requires. To make this park leash only will limit colwood dog owners to yet another space. I have only met responsible owners and well trained pups on these trails. It would be a shame to cut its usage from one of our favourite trails. Please reconsider this proposal.

The fact I had to hear about this proposal from a Facebook page from a concerned trail user shows colwood failed to communicate clearly with the community and have accurate input from trail users.

My partner and I walk our dog off-leash at Latoria Creek. We are avid hikers and my partner is a wilderness guide. Latoria Creek Park is one of the very few local areas we can go to adequately train our dog and keep her skills up. The kind of walks she needs are simply not possible with her on a leash. We have never encountered anyone with whom we’ve had a negative interaction because our dog was off leash. We’ve met only responsible dog owners in that park and appreciate how they care for that environment and their dogs. Colwood promised to listen more with our new mayor and council composition. Where’s the proof of that?

First off, it is wild that a citizen of the community has to put up their own signs at Latoria to encourage community feedback here. It's clear that Colwood is failing to effectively communicate with the community about these changes – and the lack of responses on this page shows.

Irregardless of the fact that the community survey only got *61 responses* and didn't interview trail users or run pop up events *at the trail* – the report states that feedback on off-leash dogs was mixed, yet a decision is being put forward to make Latoria Creek an on-leash area.

I have walked my dog here every morning off-leash for years. Almost everyone else I encounter also has an off leash dog and everyone is respectful and well behaved.

While I understand the need to have on-leash areas to protect the environment and enable everyone to enjoy the park freely, the lack of Colwood's off-leash areas and dog parks means making Latoria on-leash makes it harder for dog owners to give their dogs adequate exercise and training in their area.

IF we must consider on-lease in Latoria, I'd encourage Colwood consider a multi-use trail system. Seal Bay Nature Park in Courtenay does this well with designated on and off leash trails and zones. Alternatively, Colwood could consider on-leash restrictions for time of year such as during bird nesting season, and/or add a boardwalk or fencing in protective areas of the trail.

Yes, 77% of survey participants support dog on-leash *areas* in Latoria – not making the entirety of Latoria Creek on-leash. Given that dogs off-leash only accounted for 23% of the reason it limited people's visits to the park, i'm disappointed to see such extreme action taken.

I like many aspects of this plan, however I am extremely disappointed in the proposed changes to dog-leashing rules. While I understand the need to make changes for riparian protection in some areas, this can be managed better with park mitigations/barriers rather than punishing all dog owners that use this park.

Colwood has terrible access for dog owners as it is, and this removes one of the few options left for properly exercising dogs. I have been walking my dog here daily with zero issues for years; the owners that use this park are the most respectful in the area and there are no conflicts in my experience.

I do not believe that the volume of feedback used for this survey—61 survey respondents—reflects the reality or needs of the community, nor does it properly capture any meaningful data from people who regularly and love use this park. It's great that there's a plan to improve signage, add more trails, and improve park conservation, however it's disappointing how little engagement has led to such an outsized response.

I easily see more than 61 individual people walking their dogs off leash in this park weekly. The city should *properly* survey the community again, with a representative amount of actual feedback, before ratifying any of the recommendations in here. Just doing one or two park walks and getting comments from a handful of people online is not representative enough, in my opinion.

It's pretty clear even from this feedback page that there is not enough participation from people who actually use the park, so I hope the parks department plans to much more aggressively engage with people *using the park* during the week to get real feedback, rather than a model where they rely on the most vocal people in the community who may not even use it regularly.

It is bewildering that the report touts all of the people that "attended the popups" that weren't even held at Latoria itself, trying to reach actual trail users. I appreciate the efforts of Colwood's staff deeply, and love that we get reports in such depth, but I believe we should be more careful making sweeping changes before getting meaningful feedback from actual users.

Re the Havenwood Park Management Plan - This is a very comprehensive and good plan. It stays very true to the values of nature conservation and gives good solid actions to ensure that the park continues to stay healthy. I'm very happy to see that the Cooperative Management Model will continue to be valued and utilized. My main concern is with the Expansion Areas. I would like to see more details about the oversight of the developer's infrastructure contributions as well as a firm deadline for the completion of these works.