Buehler Park Alert Your Help Is Needed

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Buehler Park

(the three acre park that set legal precedent)

lies one block East of Exit 184
on the South side of Interstate-44 in Rolla, Missouri

Don't Let Buehler Park Be Converted Into A Dog-Park

July 2017 Update

Thanks to all who attended the June 19 public hearing on the Buehler Park master plan (4 pages including map).

Seven citizens testified that they did not want a dog-park in Buehler Park.

My written testimony is posted here.

The City Council was presented with a petition containing 62 signatures and 29 written comments against building a dog-park in Buehler Park.

The Chamber of Commerce, Royal Canin, and Kent Bagnall, owner of Kent Jewelry testified in favor of building a dog-park in Buehler Park.

You can watch a video of the public hearing here (0:0:55-1:28:00).

On July 5 the Council voted 11 to 0 (Dave Schott was on vacation) to accept the master plan with the dog-park as presented by Floyd Jernigan, Director of Parks and Recreation. You can watch a video of the vote here (41:05-46:45).

Apparently, commercial interests are still of more importance to the City Council than citizens and park users.

Looking back, we have dodged some nasty bullets in the past two years. First the proposal by City Administrator, John Butz, to build the new animal shelter in Buehler Park; then the proposal by Kent Bagnall and Royal Canin to turn 1/3 to 1/2 of Buehler Park, including parts of the forest and the play area into a dog-park.

The current master plan shows a dog-park of about 1/2 acre, entirely within the meadow area of the park.

This fight is not over. There will be more opportunities to advocate for Buehler Park. I will try to keep you informed.

Meanwhile you can contact your council members and tell them what you think of their vote. Contact info is listed here. And the petition is still open for signatures.

There is more info at the Buehler Park website.

Buehler Park is looking nice and getting a lot of use, both by visitors and locals. Last week's rain was a blessing. Let's pray the rains will continue. We look forward to the expected return this year of running water and bathrooms to Buehler Park.

Thank you for your help in preserving Buehler Park as the lovely little park that it is for all local residents and visitors to enjoy.


June 2017 Update

PLEASE MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO ATTEND PUBLIC HEARING
ON BUEHLER PARK MASTER PLAN, 6:30 PM, MONDAY, JUNE 19,
COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, 9TH AND ELM
____________________

Thanks to all who attended the June 5 Rolla City Council meeting. At the June 5 meeting, Floyd Jernigan, Director of Parks and Recreation, presented the new draft master plan for Buehler Park to the Rolla City Council. Sadly, converting most of the meadow area to a dog-park was part of the master plan.

The Council will hold an open public hearing on the Buehler Park Draft Master Plan at its next meeting at 6:30 on Monday, June 19, in council chambers. Please make every effort to attend this hearing and consider making a comment.

The new draft master plan is posted here (4 pages including map). The only difference I have noted between this and the previous master plan is that the new playground has been moved to not overlap the existing stegosaurus play structure and has been reduced in size from 60' by 80' to 40' by 60'.

RD Hohenfeldt's article in the Rolla Daily News on the draft master plan is posted here.

And a video of the June 5 Council meeting is here. (Presentation begins at 15:10. Discussion of plan ends at 47:35.)

Please contact your council representatives and ask that the Rolla dog-park be built at some other location. Contact information for individual council members is here. You can email the entire Council at citycouncil@rollacity.org. The phone number for city hall is 573-426-6948.

If you have not already done so, please sign the petition.

Thank you for your help in preserving Buehler Park as the lovely little park that it is for all local residents and visitors to enjoy.


May 2017 Update

PLEASE ATTEND MEETING OF ROLLA CITY COUNCIL
6:30 PM, MONDAY, JUNE 5, AT CITY HALL, 9TH AND ELM
(changed from May 15)
____________________

At the April meeting of the Rolla Parks Advisory Commission (Park Board), The Park Board voted to advise the City Council to build a dog-park in Buehler Park. The good news is that they have removed the wooded area from the dog-park proposal. The bad news is that they are still proposing to fence in most of the meadow for a dog-park.

Here is a link to the new city draft master plan for Buehler Park

I've added three overlays here to show the July 2016 Kent Bagnall (Kent Jewelry) and Crystal Watson (Royal Canin) proposal, the February 2017 Rolla City draft proposal and the April 2017 Rolla City draft proposal.

As you can see, your activism has brought us a long way since July 2016 when the Rolla City Council seemed ready to adopt the Bagnall/Watson proposal on the spot. But we can go further. Please let the city know that you do not want a dog-park in Buehler Park.

The battle now moves to the City Council which meets at 6:30 pm, Monday, June 5, in council chambers at Rolla City Hall, 9th and Elm St. PLEASE TRY TO ATTEND THIS MEETING.

Here are other ways you can help support Buehler Park:

1. Sign the petition. We have 61 signatures on this online petition. I will be sending it on to the City Council before the June 5 meeting. If you have not already signed, now is the time. If you know anyone who would be interested, please ask them to sign.

2. Your phone calls and emails are helping. Please keep them coming. Contact the City of Rolla and ask them not to build a dog-park in Buehler Park: (573)426-6948, citycouncil@rollacity.org.

Thank you for your help in preserving Buehler Park as the lovely little park that it is for all local residents and visitors to enjoy.


April 2017 Update

ATTEND MEETING OF THE PARK BOARD
5:30 PM, WED., APRIL 26 IN THE CENTRE (12TH AND HOLLOWAY).
____________________

At the March meeting of the Rolla Parks Advisory Commission (Park Board), Parks and Recreation Director, Floyd Jernigan announced that the February Open House was a great success with around 500 attending.

In the informal voting, a dog-park, with no specific size or location specified, was the winner with around 200 votes. New amenities for Buehler Park came in high, although not among the top 4.

36 attendees made comments specific to a Rolla dog-park. 26 said do not build a dog-park in Buehler Park. Three wanted a dog-park in Buehler Park. And seven said no Rolla dog-park period, mostly citing misuse of Prop. P funds.

To my knowledge, this is the first time the public has been asked to speak on the proposal to build a dog-park in Buehler Park.

ROLLA PARK-USERS WERE OVERWHELMINGLY (26 TO 3) AGAINST TAKING BUEHLER PARK LAND FOR A DOG-PARK.

Thank you to everyone who attended the Parks Open House and advocated for Buehler Park.

Please consider contacting the Park Board and asking that the Rolla dog-park be built somewhere other than Buehler Park. Here is the contact info.

Floyd Jernigan: director, Parks and Rec. 341-2386 fjernigan@rollacity.org
Larry Thomas, chair, Park Board, 364-7853 thomaslj@fidnet.com
Sue Arnold, member, Park Board, 465-3972 suearnold715@gmail.com
Susan Wrasmann, member, Park Board, 364-9588 swras@fidmail.com
Ken Kwantes, member, Park Board, 465-5569 kkwantes@yahoo.com
Andrew Meggitt, member, Park Board, 273-3171 mcmeg@fidnet.com

YOUR ACTIVISM OVER THE PAST EIGHT MONTHS HAS MADE A DIFFERENCE.

Please continue to advocate for Buehler Park. Here are some further actions you can take to help preserve Buehler Park:

1. Please sign the petition and ask your friends and family to sign too.

2. Your phone calls and emails are helping. Please keep them coming. Contact the City of Rolla and ask them not to build a dog-park in Buehler Park: (573)426-6948, citycouncil@rollacity.org.

3. Write a Letter to Editor of the Rolla Daily News. Keep them short and to the point and email them to jbuckner@therolladailynews.com with subject "Letter to Editor."

Thank you for your help in preserving Buehler Park as the lovely little park that it is for all local residents and visitors to enjoy.


February 2017 Update

The Buehler Park Draft Master Plan was presented to the public for comment at the Rolla Parks and Recreation Department open house on Tue. Feb. 28.

It will be discussed at the next meeting of the Rolla Parks Advisory Commission at 5:30 pm, Wed. March 22 in the Centre, 12th and Holloway. This date is firm now.

Please try to attend this meeting of the Parks Advisory Commission and please consider asking them not to build a dog-park in Buehler Park.

My comments on the draft master plan are posted here.
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The Rolla Parks Advisory Commission (Park Board) met on Jan. 25. Mayor Lou Magdits presented a draft of a Buehler Park Master Plan. The highlights are:
1. A dog-park, scaled down considerably from the Bagnall-Watson presentation, but still including almost all of the meadow area and some of the wooded area.

2. The addition of land that is now Kingshighway which is expected to be freed up with completion of the Highway 72 extension from Highway 63 to the 184 interchange off of I-44.

3. New bathrooms, new water fountain and new playground equipment for Buehler Park.
YOUR ACTIVISM OVER THE PAST SEVEN
MONTHS HAS MADE A DIFFERENCE.

Thank you for your help in preserving Buehler Park as the lovely little park that it is for all local residents and visitors to enjoy.


January 2017 Update

At the Dec. 19 Rolla City Council meeting, Mayor Lou Magdits announced that the city had purchased five acres adjacent to the two acres that the City already owned on Lions Club Drive between the Rolla Rural Fire Dept. and Hwy 72. Council was asked to consider this land as the location for the new Rolla Animal Shelter that was formerly proposed to be built in Buehler Park.

City Administrator, John Butz, pointed out that although their was room enough for both a dog-park and an animal shelter on this land, Buehler Park was still under consideration as a location for a dog-park.

At its Jan. 3 meeting, the Rolla City Council chose to designate the newly purchased land on Lions Club Drive as the site for Rolla's new animal shelter.

This appears to put an end to the proposal to build an animal shelter in Buehler Park. However, nothing further was said about the location of the proposed Rolla dog-park.


October 30, Update

The Rolla Parks Advisory Commission (Park Board) met on Oct. 26. Crystal Watson, representing Royal Canin, and Kent Bagnall, owner of Kent Jewelry, gave a presentation asking that a dog-park be built in Buehler Park.

Tom Sager presented reasons why Buehler Park should not be the site of a Rolla dog-park.

Mayor Louis Magdits said that the city was looking into buying land that could be used for both an animal shelter and a dog-park.

After a brief discussion, the meeting was adjorned without the Commission making a recommendation.


Converting Buehler Park into a dog park has been on the city of Rolla's hidden agenda since 2007 when they were enjoined by the courts from taking any action inconsistent with Buehler Park's use as a public park. The ink on the injunction was barely dry when city administrator John Butz made his first pitch for converting Buehler Park to a dog park.

Nine years later, the formal proposal comes, not from the city, but through Kent Jewelry and Royal Canin.

Fencing in 1/3 or more of Buehler Park's 3.2 acres for dog runs will ruin the character of the entire park. It will make half of the park unusable for tradition uses. The part they propose to fence in contains at least eight of Buehler Park's huge oak trees that may well be over 150 years old as well as most of the meadow area and two of Buehler Park's favorite pieces of dinosaur play equipment.

There are plenty of other locations for a dog park in Rolla. Right across Kingshighway from Buehler Park is the former Forest Service land which houses the Chamber of Commerce and the Welcome Center. There is plenty of unused land belonging to the city behind the welcome center that could be converted to dog runs.

No action has been taken yet on Kent Bagnall and Crystal Watson's proposal. Citizen input is needed. There is much that you can do to help.

What you Can Do To Help

Sign Online Petition to City of Rolla

Sign petition to City of Rolla asking that them NOT to build a dog-park in Buehler Park

Make Phone Calls and/or Send Emails

Your phone calls and emails are helping. Keep them coming. Please contact the people below. Be respectful. Simply ask that they build their dog park somewhere else besides Buehler Park.

City of Rolla: (573) 426-6948,
citycouncil@rollacity.org
Royal Canin USA HQ: (800) 592-6687, info.usa@royalcanin.com
Royal Canin in Rolla: Crystal Watson, (573) 202-9034, crystal.watson@royalcanin.com
Kent Jewelry: Kent Bagnall, (573) 364-1030, kent@kentjewelry.com

You may use this script although it is better to personalize your request:

“Please do not build a dog park in Buehler Park. Let Buehler Park remain a beautiful park for all people to use and enjoy. Instead please consider building a dog park across Kingshighway near the Welcome Center or at some other location in Rolla.”

There is a more complete list of city officials here.

Ask Your Friends To Help

Click here for a page of flyers you can give to family and friends (4 flyers to a page)

Attend City Meetings

The Rolla City Council meets at 6:30pm on the first and third Mondays of each month in council chambers in the basement of city hall on 9th and Elm streets. The next meeting will be Monday, July17.

The Rolla Parks Advisory Commission (Park Board) meets at 5:30pm on the fourth Wednesday of every third month in the Centre (12th and Holloway). The next meeting is on July 26.

Write a letter to the Rolla Daily News

Email to
jbuckner@therolladailynews.com with subject "Letter to Editor." Keep them short and to the point.
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Thank you for your help in saving Buehler Park,

Tom Sager, Secretary/Treasurer/Webmaster/Editor
Citizens for the Preservation of Buehler Park
yushasager (at) yahoo.com
http://buehlerpark.org

Links to More Information

Timeline for Dog-Park / Animal-Shelter Proposals

Video of Vote on BuehlerPark master plan (41:05-46:45)
City of Rolla, July 2017

Video of Public Hearing on Buehler Park (0:00:55-1:28:00)
City of Rolla, June 2017

Written Testimony at Public Hearing
Tom Sager, June 2017

Video of presentation of Buehler Park Master Plan (15:10-47:35)
Floyd Jernigan, June 2017

June 2017 Buehler Park Master Plan
City of Rolla, June 2017

Letter to Editor of Rolla Daily News
Jerry Cohen, June 2017

Letter to Editor of Rolla Daily News
Jerry Cohen, May 2017

Comparison of size of proposed dog-parks
April 2017

Buehler Park Draft Master Plan
City of Rolla, April 2017

Comments on the Buehler Park Draft Master Plan
Tom Sager, February 2017

Buehler Park Draft Master Plan
City of Rolla, February 2017

Letter to Editor of the Rolla Daily News
Jerry Cohen, February 4, 2017

Buehler Park is One of Rolla's Great Treasures
Tom Sager, Oct. 2016

Build Special-Use Parks, Including Dog-Parks, on Unused Park Land
Tom Sager, Sept. 14, 2016

No To Rolla Dog Park: Letter to Editor of the Rolla Daily News
Walter Parkinson, August 15, 2016

Letter to Mayor Magdits Et Al.
Tom Sager, August 10, 2016
August 16, Addendum to Letter

Letter to Editor of the Rolla Daily News
Jerry Cohen, July 30, 2016

Video of Rolla City Council Meeting of July 18:
Bagnall/Watson presentation (25:50-43:38)
Tom Sager's request that Buehler Park be rejected as site for Rolla dog-park (1:22:40-1:38:33)


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