Community Corner

Hot for Dog Days of Summer

The dog- and pedestrian-friendly event is set to "put us on the map," mayor says.

"Mayor, I just hope Red Bank isn't going to the dogs."

That's what Councilman Michael DuPont quipped at Wednesday night's Borough Council meeting when Mayor Pat Menna told of his plan for what has been dubbed Dog Days of Summer. The idea is to close down to vehicular traffic and turn the area "from Drummond Place to Monmouth and Broad Street to Monmouth" into a "pedestrian urban mall" for pets and their owners to peruse on the last Tuesday of each month from July through Halloween.

"This is a special event for pets that includes humans," Menna said. "So, it's sort of a switch. We've gotten a lot of criticism over the years that special events cannot include pets. I think it's a great community-building event that also includes pets."

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And the last Dog Days night on Oct. 31 will be turned into a signature Halloween for Dogs event in Red Bank. "Are they going to dress up as humans?" Councilwoman Sharon Lee joked.

The mayor had broached the issue recently with a tentative plan to start in June. The hold-off until July allows for more planning time, he said.

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The other change from the rough-draft plan is that this one will not involve the "greater part of the restaurants and be more a pedestrian urban mall," Menna said after finding that restaurants were not all receptive to the more European dining out with animals idea. 

"This will be a pedestrian mall and a dog mall for pets," the mayor said. "It will be a place for dogs and owners to meet and get to know one another. It is competely inclusive and will host many different activities. The most important thing is that we have some people on our streets on a quiet night in Red Bank (as Tuesdays usually are)."

In addition to the social aspect, Menna said that there will be booths and tables set up offering assistance with pet-centric issues such as licensing, vaccinations and pet wellness to tie in with the mayor's wellness campaign.

Representatives from the ASPCA and the Associated Humane Society will also be on hand to offer information on pet adoption and the influx of displaced pets in need of homes in the face of natural disasters like Hurricane Sandy and the Oklahoma tornado.

"It's going to put us on the map," Menna said.


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