Editor: Urging residents to vote for Sonoma to beat Paducah, Kentucky as a “Distinctive Destination” for tourists, a recent editorial took rhetorical pains to place the competition in perspective: “Does this rise to the level of community importance represented by such somber issues as who should manage the farmers market or whether dogs should be allowed to run free on the Plaza? No.”
Dog-lovers agree: Dogs are far more important than fame-game competitions.
We hasten to add, however, that no responsible dog-lover we know has suggested dogs be allowed to “run free” on the Plaza. That probably wouldn’t be good for the dogs, who would inevitably get blamed for all sorts of “incidents,” real or imagined. And dogs running free on an unenclosed Plaza dotted with kids, squirrels and duck hors d’oeuvres and surrounded on all sides by heavy vehicle traffic could be a serious threat to the safety of our dogs and the enjoyment of all Plaza users.
But allowing leashed dogs on the Plaza, perhaps at certain times and/or for special events, and taking other steps to change the anti-dog image of Sonoma, are matters deserving consideration by anyone serious about boosting tourism in our fair town. In that regard, we offer some relevant dots to connect:
The Humane Society says there are about 77.5 million ‘owned’ dogs in the United States; 39 percent of households own at least one dog. In the city of Sonoma, there are 1,000-plus dogs, probably more than the number of school-age kids.
Carmel and other “Distinctive Destinations” such as Napa, Sausalito and Mendocino make a fortune from regional tourists. Vacationing by car close to home, they are more likely than other tourists to bring their dogs along.
The Sonoma Valley Visitors’ Bureau focuses its advertising on regional tourists. Its website nowhere mentions “dogs.”
Googling “dog-friendly lodging in Sonoma Valley” turns up only four hotels.
Not so in Carmel, for example, where dogs are welcome almost everywhere, including off-leash on the environmentally breathtaking beach that is Carmel’s crown-jewel tourist attraction. Dogs are a centerpiece of Carmel’s tourism campaigns.
Signs greeting visitors to Sonoma’s Plaza – our crown-jewel tourist attraction and site of our Visitors’ Bureau – warn: “No Dogs Allowed,” a welcome repeated on trash cans throughout the Plaza, including those in front of the Visitors’ Bureau.
For the information of tourists arriving up Broadway on Farmers Market night, two signs are prominently posted on the Horseshoe hours before the Market opens: “No Dogs Allowed.”
In Sonoma, acres of ball-fields sit empty and unused most of the time. No dogs are allowed there. Ever.
The city’s sole off-leash dog park is a pen the size of a tennis court (when not fenced in half during winter because of mud) and safe only for small or infirm dogs. Everywhere else in public, dogs (local or tourist) must be leashed.
Except for two bike paths, even leashed dogs are banned from ALL public open space in the city of Sonoma, including: The Plaza, all city parks, the Overlook Trail, countless empty acres of School District, Water District and State Park properties, and all 98 acres of Open Space District land.
To find decent off-leash space, locals and tourists must take their dogs (and money) to Glen Ellen or Napa.
Napa has acres of off-leash space in three parks. Its website proudly announces: “Dogs are allowed in city parks and trails.”
Were it not for dog-friendly businesses in Sonoma that welcome and serve them, dogs in countless local families would find no public welcome here whatever outside their own homes.
For those who still believe that Distinctive Destination “sounds like Sonoma,” we respectfully suggest connecting the above dots and then googling “Dog friendly places in Paducah, Kentucky.” That should turn on the porch light at City Hall illuminating the thought that perhaps it’s time to take the keys to the City, unlock the doors of public policy and let the dogs in. At the other end of those leashes are a lot of wonderful, responsible Sonoma Valley dog-lovers, and tourists with money.
Bob Edwards
Sonoma Valley Dog Owners and Guardians
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