October 2007 Hall of Fame
Unleash The Beach: A Designated Dog Beach in Santa Monic...
Unleash The Beach: A Designated Dog Beach in Santa Monica!!!
Idea Description
In the belief that our dogs help us to BE a community---to interact as friends and neighbors--our mission is to establish an off-leash dog zone on the beach where we can recreate and socialize together with our dogs. As animal lovers, we are environmentalists too--concerned about the impact on water quality and other concerns; but the fact is, studies of other dog-designated beaches elsewhere in California show that there are no adverse environmental impacts. The City of Santa Monica has approved the concept of a pilot dog program. It needs to be implemented with the state. www.unleashthebeach.org
What will you do if you win $10,000 for this idea?
If necessary we will hire expert legal advice to help us overcome the unfair objections of the state, who allow dog beaches to exist in other areas. Part of the funds may be used to implement our proposal and educate others on the ideas of making the pilot program successful.



Q1: Any and all advice from experts on how a very popular grass roots idea actually gets respect from various governmental agencies. Do we need an actual state amendment or how can we get through to the State Parks and Recreation Department.
You like it. You’re confused by it. You want to know more. Ask questions and post comments here.
Post a commentSanta Monica has a place for graffiti.....BUT no dog beach. They let homeless crowd the streets, but no dog beach. They let film productions take over the entire beach (and parking) but no dog beach. Ventura has a dog beach (they even put out bags) and when visiting there it's no problem..... They truly are man's best friend and because the city has the power to say "no" doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. As a business and resident of Santa Monica, it's a shame.
Any one else out there interested in trying to TAKE ACTION on this designated dog beach in Santa Monica (or some LA area)??????? I'd like to pursue a legal course to get dogs on some beach in LA county. I'm researching what organization in the city to start with. Any one know anything???
Good idea!
It's time for Santa Monica to join the 21st century. Dog park at the beach NOW. Santa Monica can make it happen and again be on the forefront of innovation and leadership!
I took my dog to a fenced in dog park. Let her loose and she was immediately attacked by a pit bull whose owner didn't bat an eyelash. My dog was not killed, but has been scared for life and is now so afraid of other dogs... I sure would love a dog beach, but there are just so many irresponsible dog owners... including how many who won't even pick up poops... worms and flies are a problem. with appropriate rules and ways to monitor the rules I totally support this effort
almost over call your friends hey they are hyped up on sugar right now!!!
My dog Buju would LOVE to have a beach park!!!
fyi watch the boards one team is moving several per minute hope they check it out cause it seems to strange that so many are flying in so fast
LOVIN THE IDEA..but if you do not win keep going for the backing of sposors. Get your friends to vote because I am seeing one vote every minute for thefreshman one thye must have them lined up doing it because they are nonstop- get on the ball and start emailing your friends and say do it now! Last minute come on tell everyone to vote people!
As a kid, we loved to play with our dog at Surfside Beach, SC. Lot's of great memories... She loved the water and playing on the sand. Why not have a designated area for LA's beach loving dogs and their owners?
My dog loves to romp in the sand. She doesn't have so much fun on the walk way, so I've stopped going there in the mornings. Please let's get an area for the dogs and we'll pick up their poo, which is more than alot of people do with all of the **** they leave on the beach!
lookslikefacebook has em lined up signing up minute by minute come on rally the dogpen people
come on people last day- rock the vote- get your coworkers to vote for the idea- your parents-call your friends and telll them read it and vote if they like abd all will like!
Shasta-Bean needs to rock the beach!
heck yes!
And how is this a business idea????
nonprofit- description
yes mprice- its a nonprfoit business if you read the desriptiption and go to thier link-
I am sure lawyers would help because it would be a nonprofit- maybe a probon thing so more money can be dedicated to the setup and more. Try and see if ther are any in the area and see- lots do probono for good causes and would love to help set up something so worthwhile.
is this really a business idea?
doggies need friends and fresh air too.....
I would love to have a dog beach to take my pooches
LOVIN this idea-many cities have dog parks where the dog can run free to play and not be attached and chained up. Good going!!!!
Give Beach a Chance
A few more days- don't give up the fight- the doggies have more bark than bite but are gonna win this puppy!
Having a dog-friendly beach in Santa Monica is a true testament to the age-old adage that the dog is man's (and woman's) best friend. Happy canines and happy people blend well together and enrich one another's good cheer.
Hang out at a dog beach some time (if you can find one). Do you know what you would hear? Such things as, "Hi! How have you been?" "What a cute puppy," "It's so nice to see you again. How was your trip?" and, most commonly, "Poop alert!" My point, and I do have one, is that we dog owners need and enjoy the socialization that a dog beach would provide as much as the dogs do. Because of this, and because we are responsible dog owners, we would police the area like nobody's business. The concern about feces is a total non-issue.
The one and only time I was able to take my dog to a beach was a wonderful and unforgettable day. I'll never forget it. I would love to be able to experience that on a regular basis. Swimming pools just don't cut it. Bring on the beach!
No arm of the state or federal government can take away traditional recreational uses of tidelands without prior notice, public comment, and non-artibrary action based on the public comment. This "Public Trust Doctrine" is embedded in the State Constitution. You can find a summary of the law on the State Lands Commission website: www.slc.com
Our dogs and their human parents are all Americans, and we need this very much for our life, liberty and pursuit of happiness!!!!!! Great idea!!
Still say run dog run!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My dog comes alive on the beach. It's a wonderful idea!
I am a frequent visitor to Santa Monica and I note the support and comradeship the dog owners have for each other and for their pets. I believe a dog beach will be beneficial to them, to their pets, and also to the city. I feel confident the beach will be well taken care of.
hi my name is Oskar and i am a dog. the other day i was on a friends boat when some pelicans landed nearby. i was quite excited to see these prehistoric looking birds. so much so that in my excited state i slipped off the stern and into the water.... i was able to swim but it started me thinking about being able to do it more frequently from the beach so i could perfect my paddle. establishing a dog beach in SM would allow me to do so RUFF
Run Doggies Run!
YAY DOG BEACH!
Great idea and pray it wins but I have seen another idea that you are up against that people are voting for a friend but I see you are serious and will actually implement the idea with the prize money.
My dog & I just visited our hometown Chicago, where we made the two minute walk to take advantage of the beach every day. Dogs not only have their own, conveniently located off-leash beach area, but in addition to that they are allowed all along the lakefront. Between Memorial & Labor Day, they are confined to early morning/evening hours. Dog owners can be found tossing balls at dawn & dusk in the summer, and at any hour of the day during winter months.This has worked just fine for as long as I can remember. What is with LA? Chicago also just passed an ordinance legalizing the unofficial custom of dining at outdoor restaurants with you dog. Again, what is with LA? Thanks so much for championing this idea.
dogs in bikini's... cool! my dogs have never seen the ocean. it would be great.
I walk a wonderful poodle and he would love to run on a beach - let's make this happen - thanks, Michele
So many other communities in California have beaches where dogs can run without leashes, even exclusive places like Carmel, with its white sand beach and multimillion dollar homes. It's unbelievable that Santa Monica dogs have to ask their humans to drive them to Long Beach to experience the joy of running on a beach without a leash. Good luck to you. It's a very worthy cause!
should be: Nothing cures the MELANCHOLIC Like watching puppies splash and frolic Careful owners and licensed dogs each Create a healthy, joyful beach
Nothing cures the melancholy Like watching puppies splash and frolic Careful owners and licensed dogs each Create a healthy, joyful beach
it may beup to the city but it starts at the people wanting and needing it- great idea- KEEP UP THE FIGHT....there are not enough places for animals to play abd be free in the day and age of apts and condos! I can see you are actually going to have a plan and put the money to use BRAVO
what a neat idea,,nyc has this, why not a place for 4 leged friends- vote people and give your four legged friends a place to play!
There is so much unused space along the beach. What a wonderful place for our 2-legged and 4-legged community to come together. I could never imagine that the dog owners who currently use the city's dog parks now would ever let the beach be as neglected as the humans who use it on the weekends. The amount of trash that is left on the beach and in the parking lot near the Santa Monica pier is disgusting. I often wonder if the wrong creatures are being banned from the beach.
If human parents can bring their filthy children to beaches, then canine parents should to!
I recently found out that the northern chapter President of the Sierra Club is anti off leash parks for dogs. I will not be renewing my membership in the Sierra Club. I find it mystifying that these people don't include animals in their concept of the environment. IAnd when you have to drive 40 miles to find a beach that will allow dogs that's pretty terrible for the environment as well as our dependency on oil.
I think its a great idea because so many people in Los Angeles have dogs but there are so few places that allow them to run and get exercise without a leash.
Great idea - but isn't it up to the government to decide?
continued freom above...............and Huntington Dog Beach is living proof of the need of such beaches. You will see hundreds of happy pets and their owners and hundreds of others who do not own dogs but come to watch. It would be a crime if leashless dog beaches were not allowed to give our fourlegged furry pets the freedom they so deserve and need. I am delighted to support this beach at Santa Monica. Martin Senat. President and Founder Huntington Dog Beach
Huntington (leashless) Dog Beach has been in being for more than ten years with more than 100,000 canines visiting each year. One and one quarter miles of beach have shown that leasthless beaches are a must! This dog beach is renowned for its clenliness and safety, with its non profit organization paying all expenses and its staff working closely with law enforcement monitoring this dog paradise. Visitors come from all over the world, and the City of Huntington Beach enjoy an income estimated at more than half million dollars each year from parking meter, restaurants and hotels. If you haven't yet visited this haven, please check the website www.dogbeach.org and come see for yourself. Because of property expansion, our pets have lost the freedom they so deserve and need, and Huntington D…moreog Beach is the living proof that dog beaches are a blessing for all - our four legged furry pets, their owners, families, and the other thousands of people who have no pets but come to enjoy watching. I am proud and delighted to support more dog beaches, Martin Senat, President and Founder of Huntington Dog Beach
Springers love the beach - let us enjoy it together
You guys have done a great job championing this. Keep up the good fight!! Kim
Let's keep up the fight! We need a Dog Beach. It would really add to Santa Monica. I believe people will be so grateful it will be very well self policed. I'm waiting for the day I can let my dog run free on Santa Monica Beach.
Please be so kind and return the vote, good luck! Stevo Perisic
This group has fought long and hard for years for this cause and have hundred and hundreds of supporters. They really need an attorney because it is a run around situation.
We'd use it to hire someone who can help us successfully obtain a dog beach and to implement that program in Santa Monica, so that all dogs and their humans may romp and enjoy the beach.
good idea check out my idea and Please vote:>)
There are many dogs who are known as "water breeds", because, by genetic predisposition, they love to run near and paddle in water. A walk in a park just doesn't do it for them. The setting asside of a short strip of easily controlled and otherwise little used beach seems reasonable. For those people concerned about the possible effects of a dog taking a pee in the surf, they could produce far more beneficial results if they passed a law requiring all human swimmers to be equipped with a urine detector before entering the water.
More homes have dogs than children in them. It's way past time for every city to provide equal access to our natural resources for the enjoyment of citizens and their canine companions. I have dogs and I VOTE!
We need a dog beach. No one should have to pick between spending time with their dog or getting out to enjoy the natural beauty of our states beaches. I dream of the day when I can stroll on the beach with my pup and watch a suset over the water.....
Most dog lovers think "green" because their canine companions keep them grounded (and looking on the ground!). Ironically, some environmental groups that have opposed a dog beach want to make this a referendum about poop--because who would vote for that? That's a spin-doctor's kind of argument, backing the dog-beach advocates into a position of asking people to vote in favor of dog feces on the beach. The reality is, this hard-won little stretch of beach will so valued as a dog recreation area that self-policing will be in full force. Imagine if the city said there was only one block where you could walk your dog on the grass. The result would be the same.
My dog loves to run along the shore and dip in the waves. We drive to Huntington Beach so he can do this, 40 miles from home! We need one close to home.
My dogs love to digs holes in the sand and run up and down the length of the beach. I would like to find a place where my property taxes would underwrite a place for them. In the Palisades, there isn't one.
I'm from Chicago, where there is much less coastline but there are 3 or 4 dog beaches!!! What's wrong with LA? Let's get a dog beach already!
Dogs love water. People love water. It's silly to keep these things all seperate from eachother!
Why not have an area just for dogs!
I do not have a dog, but of course there should be a stretch of beach open to dogs!
It's about time dog owners have a portion of the beach to enjoy with their dogs. We are a responsible group and will keep the beach clean. I feel sad when I walk by the ocean without my best friend!
Let the doggies run free!!!!