A pet waiting area (Image courtesy of Yangcheon District Office)
GUNPO, Nov. 15 (Korea Bizwire) – With the pet dog population reaching 15 million in South Korea, several municipal governments are creating pet waiting areas at the entrances of public restrooms in parks for citizens who visit the parks with their pets. However, the local government in the city of Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province recently rejected a civic proposal to develop pet waiting areas in front of park restrooms.
According to a statement from the city of Gunpo on Tuesday, the proposal to operate pet waiting areas at the entrances of public restrooms in parks was submitted on October 9 as part of an idea proposal contest held for the second half of this year, involving both public servants and citizens.
The citizen who made the proposal stated that it has become inconvenient to use restrooms in parks while walking with pets. Due to the lack of a suitable place for pets to wait while their owners use park restrooms, owners are forced to bring them inside or tie them to nearby trees.
To address this inconvenience, the citizen suggested developing waiting areas with dog leash attachments using the walls of the restroom building or dog leash posts near the entrance of the restrooms. The citizen argued that the creation of waiting areas for pets could alleviate the inconvenience for pet owners and enhance the city’s pet-friendly image for visitors from other regions who bring their pets.
The number of municipal governments that have installed such waiting areas is limited. In July, the Yangcheon District Office in Seoul installed waiting areas at all 40 public restrooms in the district’s parks, while the Buan County Office installed leash stands for pet dogs in Maechang Park and Seolim Park in February.
After careful consideration, Gunpo’s city government decided not to accept the proposal. The decision was based on the judgment that the presence of pet dogs in front of public restrooms could lead to civil complaints, while also taking into consideration the potential for dog fights or thefts.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
