At a meeting held May 25th at Coindre Hall to discuss the future of what is actually known as West Neck Farms, Suffolk County Legislator Jon Cooper said that he would work with other Suffolk County legislators to create dog runs in more than half a dozen other Suffolk County parks.

    In 2003, Leg. Cooper sponsored legislation that would create a fenced-in dog run at the foot of the Coindre Hall property as well as at other county parks.

    Noting that after two years of delays in drawing up a contract between the county and the Town of Huntington, which has agreed to pay for fencing, water and other amenities for the proposed Coindre Hall dog run, Leg. Cooper said the plan now was "to proceed with the construction" of the fenced-in run there.

    However, he said, the fenced-in run "is not the answer to the problem." Aside from Coindre Hall and West Hills Park, he noted, "there are no dog runs anywhere in Suffolk County." By contrast, communities across America are creating dog parks by the thousands. "The real answer," he said, "is to build additional dog runs."

    In fact, he noted that one of the candidates for the seat of Leg. Paul Tonna (in the 17th Legislative District) has stated he is a "strong supporter of dog runs" and vowed that if he is elected in November 2005, one of his first acts would be to expand the dog run at West Hills Park.

    Also, at the meeting, Lance Mallamo, chair of the Suffolk County Historic Trust Commission, which has oversight responsibility for Coindre Hall, indicated that if the proposed run at Coindre Hall proves too small--which Huntington dog owners clearly believe will be the case--he would definitely be receptive to expanding it.

    Mr. Mallamo described the run as being located in an area of the park that had previously "been open." The plans are to remove the scrub brush that has grown up in the area, leaving a double row of mature maple trees. The proposed dog run is located near the parking lot for Gold Star Battalion Beach.

    Leg. Cooper made his remarks about the dog run in his leadoff comments. But, the vast majority of the meeting was dominated by questions about the restoration of the historic boathouse, the need for more facilities for rowers, and fears about the development of a major ferry terminal in the area of Coindre Hall and Gold Star Battalion Beach.

    Saying that Coindre Hall needed a long-term plan for the future, Leg. Cooper announced he would form a citizens advisory committee on West Neck Farms. "We need a unified vision of what the park can look like five, 10, 15 years down the road," he said.

    The Huntington Dog Owners Group, which is the largest user group at Coindre Hall at this time, has been asked to participate on the committee, along with other community groups.