The Eastsound Off Leash Dog Area is inviting the public to a meeting to exchange ideas and share information on Monday, Jan. 12, 6 p.m. at the Eastsound Fire Hall meeting room.

Since the dog area moved to its new location last August, it has seen a large increase in use. Located at the corner of North Beach and Mt. Baker Roads, the “dog park” has become a hub of activity, with island residents and visitors bringing their dogs to play, exercise and socialize.

Past and present members of the board of the non-profit Eastsound Off Leash Dog Park worked to make the move with help from Orcas Island organizations and donations from hundreds of islanders and even a few visitors. The Port of Orcas generously donated the use of the land until it is needed for airport purposes and the Orcas Community Foundation provided a small grant with the help of one of their partners.

A successful community campaign followed, providing the rest of the funds needed for relocating the park and making improvements, including a small shelter planned for this winter. Since then, there have been donations of gravel for the parking area and wood chips to help make the area more usable for the wet season. There has also been an effort by many users to keep the water containers full and the area clean.

The popularity of the park, however, has shown that ideas and help from the community are needed to keep the park in good shape, protect the property and make a few improvements to the park to make it more useful for dogs and their owners.

“We’re thrilled to see so many dogs and their owners enjoying the park, but have found it difficult to keep the area in suitable condition during the wet season. We’ve also informally heard lots of good ideas for improvements, like a separate area for smaller dogs and the addition of some dog agility course equipment,” said Jeff Hanson, chair of the dog park board of directors.

“With all of this in mind, we decided to host an initial meeting of dog park users to both talk to folks about the park and how it’s operated now and also to gain both ideas and more help to make the park successful for now and for the future.”