Lake Merritt Dog Park Update
By Paul Vidican, ODOG Vice President
Last week, I angrily and publicly chastised Oakland Mayor Jean Quan for a lack of leadership on the Lake Merritt dog park issue. I was justifiably angry because after 13 years, thousands of hours of volunteer hours, and fundraising to create an area for dog owners who live in the densest part of Oakland—the Lake Merritt area—not one but two virtually-assured areas were abruptly made unavailable by the City. On Monday Mayor Quan, after reading my attack on her, graciously called me to personally discuss the issues and background information on what’s happening with finding space for people with dogs in Oakland, and what happened with the loss of Lakeview and Snow Park locations. From our conversation and her assurances, I have respect for her leadership on this issue of significant importance to such a large, diverse group of Oaklanders, and look forward to working with her. I now wish that I had spoken with her first before I wrote the letter. For that I want to apologize.
Posted on December 3, 2013, in Astro Park, Candidate, council, election, Snow Park, Uncategorized and tagged dog park, jean quan, Lake Merritt, mayor, oakland, snow park. Bookmark the permalink. 5 Comments.
And what’s the update? What is happening?
More news coming soon, hopefully David. stay tuned.
Thanks for chastising her, Paul.
Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2025 03:15:21 +0000 To: ronzoniccnet@hotmail.com
Paul, you had every right to voice your opinion - without having to apologize after. The City if Oakland is so anti-dog it’s appalling - our voices need to be heard - and yours was. Just hoped it makes a difference.
Well since we got slammed, I’ve joined “Recall Mayor Jean Quan of Oakland” on Facebook (though I think this may be an old initiative). Still, I agree with the philosophy. The whole of city government really sickens me. I’d love to hear her argument about why dog owners have been the finger year after year.