Peeved locals surrounding Australia’s famous Bondi Beach have expressed outrage after a “crazy” motion was raised by councillors this week.
Residents were left fuming after spotting rangers on patrol at Marks Park, a popular dog friendly patch of grass in the eastern Sydney suburb, early Friday morning.
The sighting was speculated to be linked to a council meeting on Tuesday, during which a bolstered effort to clamp down on off-leash dogs was discussed.
What has since been described by community members as an “anti-dog blitz” would involve more frequent patrolling by rangers of Bondi Beach and areas around it frequented by dog owners.
The proposal was made by councillor Leon Goltsman, who encouraged colleagues to vote in favour of the motion.
“This topic is very divisive. It doesn’t matter which way you look at it, people are always going to be pitted against each other,” he said in Tuesday’s meeting.
“From the feedback that has come back, a lot of people don’t always know what they can and can’t do.”
The motion proposed the patrolling of council rangers at Bondi Beach between the hours of 6am and 8am to “provide community education on rules about dogs on the sand”.
There would also be informational signage installed at Bondi Beach, while a report would be prepared by officers summarising the outcomes of the ranger patrols.
The public would be encouraged to take part in “open days”, councillor Goltsman suggested, to educate people about responsible dog ownership.
“It’s not about punishing or fining. It’s about educating, listening, understanding … and helping people understand their rights,” he said.
“I really do believe this motion is not there to be political or put people against each other, it is there to provide something for our community so they know we’re listening.”
Locals expressed their frustration at the “blitz” on social media, where a photo was uploaded of a ranger at Marks Park and a warning reminded dog owners it was only off-leash between 4.30pm and 8.30am.
“Rangers are back at Marks Park today. Remember to leash before you leave! Also, they’re patrolling the Bondi to Bronte walk after a Council meeting on Tuesday evening,” a post to Facebook read.
Many people who responded said rangers had been on patrol for “weeks” between 5am and 8am, issuing fines to people flouting the strict rules.
Their efforts were not reflective of the broader community’s preference, several locals have argued, with one suggesting the locals fight back in some way.
“Does anyone on here have any ideas about what we can do about this? From what I can see, the vast majority of people around the beaches absolutely love dogs and they bring a smile to people’s faces,” they said.
“Dogs also create a sense of community and bring people together. It seems crazy that a small number of complaints can turn us all into criminals for giving our dogs a good life.
They even proposed the community protests by letting their dogs off their lead at Bondi on the same day.
“Not sure if we can all just start sending in positive feedback for dogs to the council, petition, protest mornings with a hundred dogs off lead at Bondi … Pretty soon dogs will be illegal in Waverly,” they wrote.
Others agreed the “dog police” had gone completely “feral” and claimed it was down to a few people who were complaining.
“We so love our dogs and we do want to give our dogs a good life and what’s more, enjoy their enjoyment at being down at the beach. That should not make us criminals,” someone else said.
Another suggested rangers used their personal discretion before issuing fines to owners of well behaved dogs.
“They just need to use a little discretion. If the dog is off lead but well behaved, there’s no need for them to approach. I was approached the other day while literally training my dog in the park,” one wrote.
An outline of the meeting agenda highlighted that between 2020 and 2023, 657 rangers had issued 797 warnings to owners for off-leash dogs and 363 infringements.
Fines were issued to 38 people in the same time period for having their dogs in a prohibited place.
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