To the editor:

Apparently, the city of Lawrence has plans for the Mutt Run unleashed dogs park. We are told that the north path, from the parking lot to the border of the youth playing fields, will become a way for cars, in an attempt to solve the traffic problem at the corner of the South Lawrence Traffic Way and 27th Street. This is a very bad idea from many points of view.

Not only does creating a more than three mile detour instead of some bridge or underpass at 27th look inefficient and environmentally doubtful, but also the impact on us, the users of Mutt Run, will be substantial. That north path is even and flat, thus very popular among us seniors using Mutt Run. The unleashed dog park is one of the treasures of Lawrence. Together with hundreds of other dog lovers, my wife and I have been using it (almost daily) for years, a pleasant, healthy and enjoyable walk with our dogs, in a place with trees and meadows, peaceful and quiet. “Solving” a traffic problem one and a half miles away by channeling cars through the park appears to us as a superficially easy but very bad solution. First, I would like to see some proof that users of the Youth Sports Complex would like to drive a mile and a half west to come back another mile and a half, instead of waiting five minutes at the cross. Second, the effect on us users of Mutt Run will be serious. A street will split the beautiful area. Safety will be reduced, perhaps significantly. Peace and quiet will be gone. I hope the City thinks carefully about alternative solutions, because allowing cars into Mutt Run is a terrible idea.

Jorge and Tita Soberon,

Lawrence