Council Resolution

At Council's Ordinary Meeting on 26 April 2022 it was resolved:

That Council:

1. Receive this report for information as an overview of community consultation undertaken in 2021 associated with the review of Access Areas for Dogs Policy.

2. Acknowledge and commend the involvement and interest of the community in providing feedback on the Access Areas for Dogs Policy.

3. Endorse the proposed methodology in relation to reviewing the Access Areas for Dogs Policy and Dog Off-Leash Guide based on the community feedback received to date.

4. Recognise that appropriate environmental due diligence must be exercised by Council, and environmental assessments are required in line with State and Commonwealth legislation for dog access areas.

5. Allocate a budget of $180,000 from Council’s Dog Off-leash Internal Reserve to fund the engagement of resources in Environmental Services, City Development to undertake the required environmental assessments in-house.

6. Receive a future report once resources are engaged on the scope of environmental assessments to be undertaken and the associated timeline to complete, noting that this work is required to be undertaken prior to a revised draft Access Areas for Dogs Policy being prepared.

7. Receive a future report on the proposed revised draft Access Areas for Dogs Policy, which will seek a Council resolution to place a revised draft Access Areas for Dogs Policy document on public exhibition with the report back to include: a. a detailed analysis and development of an associated risk based, evidence based, compliance section to the policy. Risks to include dog density with respect to dog off leash areas (fenced, beaches) seasonality of bird breeding and holiday seasons. b. analysis of the financial implications of education and compliance. 8. Continue to liaise and engage with key stakeholders and community throughout the Policy review process.

The Report to Council Agenda and Minutes of the 26 April 2022 Ordinary meeting can be viewed on Councils Agendas and Minutes web page.

Thank you for your interest and involvement in this project. The Gauge Consulting Consultation Summary Report is available to view in the Document Library on this web page.