Recently, the Town Council held a special meeting to continue their discussion about the regulations pertaining to dogs on the beach in Orchid. This was a follow-up meeting to 1 held on March 2, when the discussion had to be cut short in order to stay within the time limitations of the meeting space. The Town Council heard much public input at that earlier meeting and received many letters on the subject too.
By the end of the special meeting, which included another opportunity for public input, the Town Council reached unanimous consensus to direct the Town's legal counsel to work within a proposed framework for revising the Town's regulations regarding dogs on the beach.
The framework includes:
- Dogs may be on the beach on-leash at any time of day, as long as the leash is no longer than 6 feet in length
- Dogs may be off-leash on the beach if:
- it is between the hours of sunrise to 9 a.m. or 5 p.m. to sunset; and
- the dog is actively licensed through the Town; and
- the caretaker has no more than 2 off-leash dogs at a time; and
- the dog is within 60 feet of the caretaker; and
- the caretaker maintains visual contact with the off-leash dog
The Town's legal counsel was given direction to include details of enforcement and was given authority to add regulations that would support those already outlined.
The proposed Ordinance to enact these revisions to the Town Code is expected to be considered at the April 6 Town Council meeting upon first reading and, if approved at that meeting, will be voted on upon second reading and a formal public hearing at the May 4 Town Council meeting.