Duck Pond Improvements Waddle On

Everyone who came to the 2 hour  Village Pond Park workshop put on by the City on Saturday knew that the park had several critical problems –

·       The water quality was poor

·       People were overfeeding the birds

·       The birds were doing their thing everywhere

·       Local residents were worried about crime

The problem of crime never came up. The experts hired by the City to study the water quality were absent. No animal behavior experts or veterinarians had been contacted to deal with the bird problems. So what was supposed to be a 2 hour “workshop” turned into a question and answer session, with residents asking good questions and offering excellent suggestions, and the City’s consultant taking notes.

Two directions came out of this workshop. They were the same two directions that came out of the other workshop, and in fact they were the same two directions that went into the last workshop.

·       Most people want the Pond to stay

·       Most people want the Park to reflect the “natural” setting

Despite several attempts by the city paid consultant to steer the more than 50 participants down the path of considering a smaller lake option or a no lake option, members of the audience were steadfast in holding to the two directions. Indeed, several people interrupted on several occasions to try to get the program on track to solving the problems right in front of us. Dare we repeat them, for the sake of the consultant who seems to have missed the point

·       The water quality was poor

·       People were feeding the birds

·       The birds were doing their thing everywhere

·       Local residents were worried about crime

The call to order didn’t dissuade the consultants from offering their ideas, one of which was – “What about installing a large area with artificial grass where people could hold outdoor weddings?” Sure. High heels and bird poop go well together. And did you ever try to clean artificial turf after 300 ducks and geese were finished doing their business?

Despite the shortcomings of the workshop, some good ideas did emerge, most of them from the audience.

1.    The City should enact an ordinance against feeding the birds. Council members McCullough and Robinson were there, so this may have a chance of happening, although you have to wonder why it’s taken this long.

2.    Educational signs, in two languages, should be placed at strategic places to inform people that feeding the birds may be harmful.

3.    Enforcement is a key. Perhaps STARS could be used.

4.    Geese overpopulation should be dealt with at the source – reducing the numbers of new geese that are born.

5.    As soon as possible, animal experts should join the process. OCASC is the contract agency for the City, and they should be relied upon for assistance.

6.    Reducing the ability of geese to fly into the Pond should be explored. This might be done with strategically placed trees or shrubs, water spouts in the Pond, etc. Bear in mind that this doesn’t eliminate the problem, but shifts it elsewhere, and some consideration must be given to this.

Thanks to

o   Lake 1 for hosting the event.

o   The City for sponsoring it.  

o   Mayor Pro Tem McCullough, Councilman Robinson, and Former Mayor Rudolph for showing up.

o   Parks and Recreation Commissioners Herrin, Rosenberg, and Werkmeister for attending.

We look forward to the next event, and hopefully the consultants will be better prepared and we can have a more productive meeting.