Off-leash dogs now allowed in Bert Flinn Park during morning hours, as Port Moody test new pilot project

Port Moody is unleashing a new off-leash pilot project in Bert Flinn Park, hoping a designated morning loop will help tame tensions between dog owners, nature lovers, and other park users.

The motion for the one-year pilot passed unanimously at council’s July 8 meeting.

“ We’ve been waiting quite a while for this to come and I know there’s lots of excitement in the community,” said Coun. Haven Lurbiecki. “This is our first step forward to a bigger vision for a dog management strategy.”

Under the pilot, dogs will be allowed off-leash on a newly defined 960-metre trail loop between dawn and 10 a.m., as long as they remain under control and within the designated boundaries. Staff say the trail was carefully chosen to avoid environmentally sensitive areas and high-conflict zones like popular bike paths.

Council emphasized that the success of the initiative will hinge on consistent enforcement – an issue that has plagued the park for years. Between 2019 and 2024, the city received 65 complaints about off-leash dogs in the park. Zero tickets were issued.

Lurbiecki warned that nothing would change unless rule breakers are ticketed.

“We’ll just be in the exact same situation that we’re in now, except we spent money on signs,” Lurbiecki said. “When we say these hours, we mean business, because we’ve invested in this, we’ve heard from the community, and we want this to work.”

The project includes a $15,000 enforcement budget that will fund five weekly patrols by bylaw officers during spring and summer months, and two per week in the off-season.

Staff said enforcement will begin with an educational approach but gradually move toward stricter ticketing if needed.

Mayor Meghan Lahti suggested signage should make clear that violators will be ticketed.

“Right now, they’re in there, off leash all the time,” she said. “I was in there with my dog on a leash, and I felt like I was like the odd man out.”

Coun. Diana Dilworth, who said she stopped using the park due to uncontrolled dogs, supported strong enforcement.

“All it’s going to take is one person walking one way, telling the five other people they’re giving out tickets back there,” she said. “People are immediately going to leash up their dogs.”

Dilworth added the pilot could become a model for similar projects elsewhere in the city if successful.

The initiative comes with an estimated $31,750 to $36,750 price tag, funded through the Growing Communities Fund. In addition to enforcement, the budget includes signage, trail preparation, environmental monitoring, and a public feedback system with on-site QR codes.

Staff also committed to monitoring the impact on vegetation and wildlife, and will assign a pair bylaw officers with environmental staff to evaluate the park’s condition. Waste stations and signage will be assessed during the pilot, and more may be added based on public input.

Coun. Samantha Agtarap said the pilot gives the city a chance to gather data and assess whether its approach is working.

“If it doesn’t go well, and we are experiencing environmental degradation of some of the environmentally sensitive areas in that park, we have to look at this in a different light.”

“I just hope that people can be respectful,” she added. “This is a privilege and we are trying to do our best to balance the needs of all park users.”

A final evaluation including compliance rates, environmental effects, and feedback from the public is set to be conducted at the end of the year-long trial. Based on those findings, staff will make a recommendation on whether to continue, adjust, or discontinue the program.