The Milton City Council recently heard a proposal by Public Works Director Robert Drewry about the possibility of adding pet waste stations along roadways in the Deerfield Parkway Corridor. Drewry noted the is one of Milton’s most dense areas routinely full of runners and walkers, many with their dogs.
The proposal would add 13 pet waste stations at intersections and midpoints at $500 each for a total of $6,500. The larger and ongoing expense would be servicing these to remove dirty bags and add clean ones; this would cost about $9,400 annually.
According to city documents, “Council Member Rick Mohrig brought up whether adding pet waste stations along these particular roads could snowball and leave others asking if the city “should do it everywhere that people walk dogs.” While saying this made sense at city parks or trails, Mohrig questioned spending taxpayer dollars on something that’s “the responsibility of the pet owner.”
Others questioned if the stations would be used at all or change the behavior of dog owners not already cleaning up after their dogs.
For the time being, the city will gather information for a future decision on a scaled-down “trial” addition of six or seven pet waste stations and determine how the servicing cost might shrink with fewer stations.
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