Nate's Point Dog Park has been the center of recent complaints from the San Diego Track Club and other San Diegan citizens who find the design of the park unaccommodating. Nate's Point was established in 1973 by a city official, Nate Wells, who created the grassy area. In 1996, it was established as a dog park and a few years later, after petitioning and private funding from the Balboa Trust Fund, a fence was put up to make it an off-leash site. This is where the conflict arose-- the San Diego Track Club, which has been around since 1954, has three of their annual races run through Nate's Point for several years prior to the dog park's establishment.

The San Diego Track Club has expressed numerous concerns with the fences of Nate's Point, as they directly block the route the club used to run during their annual races down Powder Hill. In the 54th Annual 8-Mile Balboa Run in 2007, 287 runners competed, causing a logistical nightmare as they squeezed through the swing gates at Nate's Point. Track Club President Nancy Morris and colleague Bill Aaron noted that during the races, runners were "cursed and yelled at" by angry dog owners.

The problem that track club members currently have with Nate's Point is because the fences were built very quickly, without any real public discussion. "Our frustration is the inconsideration," said Morris. "They did it in a back-door manner." The city required that the dog park committee post a public notification before the fences were built. Neither Morris nor Aaron saw or heard any kind of public notification prior to the fencing work.

They have been in communications with David Lynn of the Nate's Point Dog Park Committee since January about developing a new design for the park that takes into account the safety of runners as well as the dogs and dog owners. The design offered to the Dog Park Committee would establish a fenced route that splits Nate's Point, separating small dogs from big dogs. It could also incorporate light posts, which is part of the Nate's Point Improvement Plan. The Track Club offered to help with the costs to make it a potentially win-win situation.

The Nate's Point Dog Park News Blog has stated its willingness to cooperate with the Track Club, but Morris and Aaron have not been in direct contact with the committee since January. Their last communication was with Lynn, co-founder of Nate's Point Dog Owner's Group, who said the committee was still working out the details of the design and would be finished in a few more months. Seven months have passed, and no apparent solution has been reached. "Lynn is willing to listen-- but one person can't act unilaterally for the committee," said Aaron.

City officials and Balboa Park Rangers (who also would like to have a route that cut through Nate's Point) have expressed support for the track club's efforts, but wish to "stay on the sidelines" due to the numerous angry phone calls they have received from dog owners. The city has regarded this as an issue to be worked out only amongst the parties involved, which leaves the San Diego Track Club feeling underhanded. "Nate's Point is public land," said Aaron, "but they feel that they control the park."

Coming up in August, the track club will be hosting its 55^th annual Balboa Run. Despite the conflicts with the Dog Park, the route through Nate's Point will remain the same. The Parks and Recreation department has been helpful in the past in setting up temporary fences for races, and this one will be no different. Aaron and Morris are still hoping to work the dog park committee on a design that will benefit both parties, but reiterated their commitment to finding a workable solution.

"They feel that there is no need to work with us, and can just wait for us to leave," Morris said. "But we are not going away."

                                        

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