Murray Bridge council watch: Dog park time-share scheme abandoned

Plus councillors discuss New Year’s Eve fireworks and a property rates review at their January 2025 meeting.

Murray Bridge council watch: Dog park time-share scheme abandoned
Sorry pups – time to get your leashes back on. Photo: Getty Images.

Dogs will no longer be allowed off-leash at two Murray Bridge parks after a time-share trial proved unsuccessful.

The city’s council allowed dogs to run free at Avoca Dell Reserve and Tumbella Drive Reserve on a trial basis last year, between certain hours.

But the response from the public was mixed, according to a council survey.

Half of the locals who filled in a survey said they were happy with the idea, especially since dogs would be able to swim in the River Murray.

But 40 per cent of residents were concerned.

Council staff recommended making Tumbella Drive Reserve an off-leash area on a permanent basis, but councillors voted against that idea at a meeting last Tuesday night.

Cr Tom Haig said he had received reports of a small dog being attacked by a larger one, and of dogs being left to “run amok” up Wildens Way after their owners failed to stop them escaping.

He wouldn’t support the off-leash proposal unless a fence were built around the park, he said.

Cr Karen Eckermann also spoke out against the time-share, but only because she believed dog owners needed access to a permanent swimming area.

The council has now spent more than three years hoping to add more dog parks to the four already in operation in Murray Bridge, but has yet to come up with a solution.

A fifth dog park was originally due to be built on the city’s east side in 2024-25.

Fireworks burst over Murray Bridge's riverfront on New Year's Eve. Photo: Glenn Power.

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