City council votes against making Westminster Hills Open Space dog park smaller

WESTMINSTER, Colo.
— Westminster City Council voted Monday against making the dog park at Westminster Hills Open Space any smaller.

Dog owners spoke out for months against a proposal to reduce its size.

The measure, passed by a 5-2 vote Monday night, does include a stipulation that the dog park could shrink by 20 acres with future zoning amendments.
Two women on the city council expressed feelings Monday that the measure was not in the best interest of the environment or Westminster residents.

The debate over the park started when Westminster city staff started tracking degradation to the open space landscape and wildlife, a city spokesperson told Denver7, including humans not picking up after their pets.
That's when city council proposed limiting the off-leash dog park are in the overall open space.

In response to pushback, Westminster City Council voted to add a new section to the municipal code that delineates where exactly dogs are allowed off leash in the Westminster Hills Open Space and where they're not.
Dogs are specifically not allowed on "the land acquired from the Sisters of the New Covenant" as that land is reserved for conservation efforts.

In the first reading of the measure earlier this month, the city council laid out an area-specific management plan that included signs, a public education campaign, parking management and enforcement strategies to address concerns.

The initial cost for the plan was estimated to be between $1.34 and $1.7 million in 2025.