What does a unanimous vote decide when part of the budget hasn't been raised yet? At its Nov. 2 meeting, the Carpinteria Planning Commission approved plans for a permanent off-leash park at Monte Vista Park, according to Coastal View News. The temporary fencing that has stood since April 2024 will give way to something built to last.
The approval settles the location, the layout and the fact that there will be a park. It does not settle what the fence looks like. That comes down to one budget line, and the money for most of it is supposed to come from Carpinteria dog owners.
What the Commission Approved
The plan covers 15,044 square feet in the southeast part of Monte Vista Park, off Bailard Avenue on the city's northern edge. Neighbors include the Villa Del Mar and Casitas Village condominiums and the Vista de Santa Barbara Mobilehome Park. The city filed it as Project 26-2378-DP/CDP/ARB.
According to the Coastal View News report, the permanent version keeps separate areas for large and small dogs. It adds an off-leash transition entrance, an ADA-accessible walkway, benches, drinking fountains, trash cans and new landscaping just outside the fence. City planner Megan Musolf told the commission the fence would have a "puppy picket" along the bottom so smaller dogs can't slip through or dig under it. The city's staff report says all existing trees stay in place and the new plantings go along the southern fence line facing Pandanus Street.
The budget is $200,000. Community Development Director Nick Bobroff explained that $150,000 comes from Quimby funds set aside for the project. "The remaining 50,000 shortfall is what I believe we're hoping C-DOG will fundraise through the community," he told commissioners, as Coastal View News reported.
Where the $50,000 Goes
The staff report in the Nov. 2 agenda packet includes a backup plan. If full funding doesn't come through, the Parks, Recreation and Community Services department would replace the powder-coated aluminum "Lexington" fence with black chain-link. Depending on how much money is available, the dog-bone-shaped benches could also be removed or replaced with simpler ADA-compliant benches.
| Fence option | Estimated cost |
|---|---|
| Lexington aluminum, five feet, the approved design | $79,500 |
| Lexington aluminum, six feet | $83,000 |
| Black chain-link, six feet | about $45,000 |
| Black chain-link, five feet | about $42,000 |
At five feet, the aluminum fence costs about $37,500 more than chain-link. That one choice accounts for roughly three-quarters of the $50,000 the community is being asked to raise, and the specialty benches cover part of the rest. In practice, what C-DOG raises decides whether the park gets the fence shown in the renderings or the cheaper fallback.
Switching to the backup isn't automatic. The staff report says any move to the alternate design sends the project back to the Architectural Review Board, and a condition of approval makes that a requirement. Commissioner Xy VanAntwerp raised this at the hearing. "I'm having trouble finding consistency with a funding policy," she said, per Coastal View News. "The report says that the cheaper version applies if adequate funding is not secured."
Ongoing costs don't change with the fence. Parks Director Jeanette Gant told the commission that upkeep stays with the city's regular contractors: mowing, edging and gopher abatement. That work is funded in the current budget cycle and would continue whether or not the permanent dog park is built.
Five Feet, by Choice
The staff report also shows how tightly the city is watching costs. At the July 16 review, the ARB said it supported a six-foot fence to discourage dogs from jumping out. The parks department kept five feet and gave three reasons. The six-foot aluminum fence would cost $3,500 more. A survey of seven Central Coast jurisdictions found that 9 of their 10 off-leash parks use five-foot fences and the tenth uses four-foot. And the park rules already require owners to stay with their dogs and keep dogs in heat out of the park.
When a department turns down $3,500 in extra height, a $37,500 gap between two fence materials is a real decision, and that decision depends on donations.
How the Pilot Made the Case
The city's staff report says the parks department has worked with the Carpinteria Dog Owners Group, known as C-DOG, toward an off-leash park since 2018. The search went through several sites. A shared-use pilot at El Carro Park ran first. The city's Carpinteria Dog Park Feasibility Study 2019 looked at El Carro, Monte Vista and Memorial as shared-use parks, and at Lagunitas, Dump Road and Carpinteria Creek as possible dedicated sites. Staff advanced Monte Vista ahead of Lagunitas because an off-leash area at Lagunitas would likely need to be part of a larger, more expensive park plan.
Monte Vista wasn't an easy sell. In November 2023, Coastal View News reported that the commission approved the fenced pilot for up to a year with a six-month review. Neighbors raised concerns about noise and parking. The report also recounted complaints from the El Carro pilot about noise, dog waste and dogs off leash outside the designated areas and hours.
According to the city's 2026 staff report, the pilot opened in April 2024, got frequent use and drew minimal complaints at its six-month check-in. Two more temporary use permits followed while the permanent design moved forward. Noozhawk reported in September 2025 that C-DOG opened and locked the gates every day for the first six months and brought in water jugs. After that, the city dropped the lock-and-patrol requirement, and the group kept teaching users the rules. City staff told the ARB in July that C-DOG volunteers still act as on-site stewards and report maintenance needs.
The volunteers who helped the temporary park pass its trial run now have the job of funding the permanent fence.
Where the Fundraising Stands
At the July 16 ARB meeting, C-DOG founder and treasurer Lorraine McIntire said the group had raised $8,000 toward its $50,000 commitment and that a donor had offered to match up to $10,000, according to Coastal View News. C-DOG President Van Fleisher was also named in that coverage.
The group's best-known fundraiser is a photo book, "Dogs of Monte Vista Park." Coastal View News reported it was offered for a $35 donation in paperback or $45 in hardcover. On Aug. 18, the Montecito Journal reported the book had raised almost $2,000 in its first two days. C-DOG takes general donations through its donation page.
The city is also looking for outside money. The agenda for the City Council's Nov. 9 meeting included approval of an application for a Land and Water Conservation Fund grant for the Monte Vista Dog Park Project.
Between Now and Construction
You don't lose a place to take your dog while this plays out. The parks department plans to leave the temporary fencing up until construction starts on the permanent park, to keep the time without an off-leash area as short as possible. The current temporary use permit runs through the end of April 2027.
Parking stays as it is. Monte Vista has 20 on-site spaces, two of them ADA, plus bike parking and nearby street parking. The plan adds none. Staff acknowledged the lot can fill up or overflow during reserved barbecue events and after-work evenings, but concluded the dog park's light, spread-out use is unlikely to add much demand. Two letters to the ARB raised parking concerns. Staff rejected adding spaces along the west drive aisle because it would narrow access and conflict with an easement.
C-DOG lists the park hours as 7:30 a.m. to 30 minutes before sunset. The rules the city posts include:
- Dogs on leash outside the park and when entering or leaving
- Dogs licensed and vaccinated
- Owners supervise their dogs and pick up waste right away
- No more than three dogs per handler
- No dogs in heat, no puppies under four months and no aggressive dogs
Why Monte Vista Matters for the Rest of Town
Monte Vista matters because Carpinteria has few other places for a dog to run. The city's dog regulations require dogs to be leashed and under control in public except in a city-designated off-leash area. Dogs are not allowed on the city beach between Linden and Ash avenues, leashed or not. California State Parks allows dogs in the Carpinteria State Beach campground and day-use area but not on the beach. At the Harbor Seal Rookery, the city asks visitors to stay on the bluff-top trail with dogs leashed, and the rookery beach closes from Dec. 1 through May 31, starting in a few weeks.
These are rules we're passing along, not legal advice. Check the linked city and state pages for current requirements before you head out.
At Alemann & Associates, we've been watching the fence-fund numbers along with everyone else in Carpinteria. If you'd like to know how city park projects like Monte Vista are going, or what they mean for the streets around Bailard Avenue, give us a call. Contact Us.
