A pet project that works

SULLIVAN'S ISLAND — The six months that town officials spent meeting with community members to iron out rules for dogs on the beach in 2004 are paying off now, according to a group of College of Charleston graduate students who studied the ordinance.

The seven students in professor Angela Halfacre's environmental community outreach class told community members at Town Hall on Friday that their surveys indicate that residents and visitors are highly satisfied with the ordinance and most people are following the rules.

"There's a lot of positive perception about the dog ordinance," graduate student Nikki Seibert said, calling it "a great tool and a model for other communities."

The town allows dogs on the beach without a leash from 5 to 10 a.m. from April 1 through Oct. 31, and from 5 a.m. until noon from Nov. 1 through March 31, as long as the dogs respond to the owners' voice commands. Dogs are allowed on the beach on a leash after 6 p.m. They are not allowed on the beach at all in the middle of the day.

Dog owners, both residents and visitors, must purchase a town-issued dog tag and collar for $25 each year if they want to bring their pets within the town limits of Sullivan's Island.

Seibert said town officials faced a big hurdle coming up with an ordinance that would please most people. Many dog owners wanted to let their pets run free on the beach at all times, while other residents preferred that the leaping, sniffing, picnic-stealing canines not be allowed at all, she said.

Placing limits on dogs on the beach is important, the students said, because dogs can be a nuisance and dog waste can be an environmental hazard.

Seibert also said that the population on the coast is exploding and that could mean more dogs and the problems they bring to the beach. The town was smart to set in place an ordinance early, she said.

Tom McLellan,the town's animal control officer, said the biggest problem now centers around pet waste. The rules state that owners must pick up after their pets. The town has placed stands with plastic bags at various places along the beach for that purpose, but many dog owners are leaving the bags filled with dog waste on the beach, he said.

"Waste cleaning is the major issue," according to the students' survey, Seibert said.

Sullivan's Island resident and dog owner Wayne Stelljes, who attended the meeting Friday, said he attended the early meetings on the ordinance to "get the best deal we could for our dogs." He said he's generally satisfied with the rules, but because they are working so well, he said, the town should consider extending the time dogs can be on the beach off-leash.

McLellan said about 10 tickets were issued during the summer to people violating the ordinance. He said he and other enforcement officials first educate violators about the ordinance and give them warnings before they issue tickets.

The fines for violating the ordinance begin at $250, McLellan said. Fines have gone as high as $1,500 for people who have been extremely uncooperative, he said.

Seibert said "enforcement is crucial" to any good community ordinance, and Sullivan's Island is definitely enforcing the rules. Officers vary the times they patrol the beach, she said, so people are more likely to follow the rules all the time.

And, she added, the ordinance pays for itself. The town sold more than 1,000 tags this year, she said, which covers the cost of salaries for the people who monitor the beach, as well as signs and waste bags, she said.

The rules and expectations are clear now, she said, and people are following them. It's working so well, she said, that beachgoers have begun confronting dog owners who aren't following the rules.

Reach Diane Knich at 937-5491 or dknich@postandcourier.com.