Granville Village Council is considering options for a local ordinance that would extend the current leash law to more parts of the village.
At its last meeting, after considering the legislation and hearing public comments, the council tabled a proposed ordinance for a second time.
The council will now consider two separate ordinances, each offering options to expand the existing requirement and describing where dogs must be leashed. The original proposal to expand the leash requirement now includes an amendment to add the T.J. Evans Trail bike path and the walking path along Newark-Granville Road.
The second ordinance, which will be introduced at the next meeting on July 16, would apply the current leash laws to the entire village. If passed, dog owners would be required to keep their pets on a leash at all times in all public spaces in the village.
The council is expected to amend both ordinances to include exceptions for service animals. Leashes will not be required for service animals if the leash interferes with the service dog’s ability to perform its job.
“Essentially, it would be any service animal, which is any dog individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability,” said Village Manager Herb Koehler, reading from the Ohio Revised Code.
The existing leash law applies mainly to streets in the business district and core of the historic village: East Broadway from Main Street to Granger Street, North Prospect Street from Broadway to College Street, South Prospect Street from Broadway to Elm Street, and Main Street from College Street to the TJ Evans trail.
During the meeting on June 18, residents commented both for and against the leash-law extension.
Sarah Lee, a Granville resident for 36 years, argued that an extension of the laws would help keep pets and residents safe. With more traffic in Granville, unleashed dogs face a higher risk of being hit by vehicles, Lee said.
“Even well behaved dogs can dart into roads if distracted, endangering themselves and drivers,” Lee said.
Lee also commented on the safety of children walking to school. Lee said the current leash law leaves gaps that could put children at risk of a possible encounter with an unleashed dog. And for those who may experience fear around animals, Lee added that leashes provide more peace of mind to these individuals.
Dan Bellman, on the other hand, said that unleashed dogs are often more trained than leashed dogs, and therefore less dangerous.
“I think this ordinance is really unneeded. … It’s really not going to have any positive impact,” Bellman said.
The next Granville Village Council meeting typically would be on the first Wednesday of the month, but because of the July 4 holiday events in Granville, the next meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 16, at Village Hall, 141 E. Broadway.
Maddie Luebkert writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.