To the Editor:
The city initiative to install pet stations is commendable. This will offer a convenient, no-excuses opportunity for everyone to comply with the law.
However, I doubt the majority of those pet owners who have long ignored the law by refusing to pick up after their dogs will take advantage of this convenience.
If I seem jaded, it is not without reason. In 2013, with much support from City Hall and the third ward councilman, an effort was made, on west 58th Street, to encourage dog walkers to pick up after their pets and to discourage daily littering and dumping of items not meant for general trash pickup.
So prevalent had these incidents become that the city posted eight large signs warning of a $1,250 fine for not picking up after a pet and two large signs warning of a $1,250 fine for dumping or littering. The city also positioned a large litter receptacle at each end of the targeted area—an isolated spot less than 130 feet long so configured to be out of the line of sight of even the nearest homes.
Sadly, neither the signs threatening fines nor the convenience of litter receptacles has changed things. On any day dog feces can be found in abundance, some piles directly below the signs warning of fines for such an offense. All manner of litter covers the ground just inches away from the mostly empty litter baskets.
Pet stations and litter baskets are appreciated by those who obey the law, respect their neighbors, and take pride in their community. Those who defy the law and defile their community require a more compelling approach from city officials and more personal attention from those who enforce the law.
WILLIAM T. SMITH