Curt is Chicago native – but don’t hold that against him. After stops in Madison and California, he and his wife moved to Waukesha in 2004 to open their own downtown business.
When we settled in Waukesha back in 2004, one of my first assignments was to develop a walking pattern for my two dogs.
I was excited because I had never walked the dynamic duo in a city setting before. From what I had seen driving around town, Waukesha was an urban development balanced well with green space.
I was spoiled in California. In our town center was a manmade lake. A typical evening would find the likes of rollerbladers, walkers, and fellow dog exercisers wandering the path around the water. Another great feature were the conveniently placed dog bag stations.
Every 100 yards or so, a box of dog “refuse” bags was available for use by the public- and, believe it or not, people actually used them. It was common courtesy.
So I set out through Waukesha to establish a dog route. Thirty yards behind my building is a portion of the Riverwalk. There are no dogs allowed there. There are no dogs allowed anywhere along the Fox Riverwalk.
I walked up Maple towards the library; no dogs allowed in Cutler Park. You can get drunk on the Indian Mounds (B.Y.O.B.), but do not walk your dogs there.
I continued through the neighborhoods and came upon Bethesda Park.
Don’t even try it.
The neighbors will call the police if they see you enter the park with a dog. Maybe they should have been that fast to call the cops when the taggers sprayed painted over the mural on the Bethesda bridge- twice.
Funny thing about that neighborhood- on the outskirts of the park I passed a guy with two dogs who said to me, “Hey, buddy, they don’t allow dogs in this park.” After my initial confusion, we both laughed. It was nice to talk to someone with a sense of humor on the dog walking matter.
To this day, I have no idea where to walk my dogs. I don’t want them to relieve themselves on Main Street, but if that is what the City wants…
Waukesha wants more people to move into its City. They want more people to discover it’s Downtown. Unless you have a dog. Then go to some other town, and bring your four-legged friends with you.
A City Worker told me that Waukesha has dog runs in various locations around town. I live downtown, work downtown, spend my money downtown, but I have to drive my dogs somewhere else to walk them.
I understand the City’s frustration with dog owners. I watch from my window every day as ignorant dog owners let their dogs “deposit” on the City landscaping and just walk away.
I once chased a lady to her front door with a steaming pile of poop she “accidentally” left in the middle of the sidewalk. It is my pet peeve!
But seriously folks, can’t you give us a little space down here. Let’s meet half way- we will keep our dogs leashed and clean up after them, and Waukesha will open some of its green spaces to dogs.
And let me issue tickets to those that don’t clean up their poop. I will volunteer! The money raised can go towards keeping the streets clean.
