The Fiesta Island Dog Owners nonprofit group, also known as FIDO, was founded in 2008 and since then has grown to over 14,000 members. According to Board Member, Jean Spengel, FIDO’s “soul purpose is to preserve the 90 acre, fenced off leash, dog park intact without a lot of unnecessary intrusions that would make it very difficult for continuous use as an off leash dog park.”
In the County of San Diego, there are almost 800,000 dogs and this is why preserving this area is so important to FIDO. According to FIDO, “The existing fenced, off-leash area provides the only off-leash park location large enough where the public and visitors can exercise significantly along with their off-leash dogs.”
The city has been contemplating putting into action the rest of the changes in the Mission Bay Master Plan for a long time, but have not been able to do so, due to money and opposition. “The Mission Bay Master Plan was written up in the early 60s, updated in ‘72, and updated again in ’94; basically it looked at that whole man made area and each time they did one of these master plans it made a plan for what would happen in each of those areas. Through the years, the city has developed all of mission bay park, with the exception of Fiesta Island and the South Shore.”
FIDO has prepared their own master plan for what changes should and should not be implemented at Fiesta Island and hope to be able to submit this, along with the cities plan, to the Coastal Commissions for approval. FIDO’s plan is a mix of the city’s already proposed plan and FIDO’s own preferences for the unleashed dog territories.
According to FIDO: “The landscape is rocky and unmaintained except for seasonal mowing to allow for parking use for special events. A variety of native along with weedy and invasive species, shrubs and grasses among others, ebbs and flow and allow for some degree of nesting bird and small animal habitat, even with unrestricted off-leash dog use. A goal of this alternative is to maintain the existing fenced area and within it establish a resurfaced natural xeriscape compatible with existing conditions while allowing for the eradication of foxtails.” Their goal is to keep this as close to the natural flora as possible, while still trying to work with the city and the other parties involved, such as the Paddle Boarding and Canoeing clubs.
If you would like to join FIDO in their fight to preserve and maintain Fiesta Island, there are several things you can do. First, they hold several fundraising events throughout the year, which you can find on their website. Secondly, they host a Fiesta Island clean up twice a year. Third, you can go onto their website and download a form in order to gain signatures for them. Fourth, you can purchase your Amazon merchandise through Amazon Smile, which gives FIDO a percentage. Fifth, you can vote for Fiesta Island as “Best Dog Park” through a contest put on by USA Today (Fiesta is No. 1 so far). Sixth, you can purchase a FIDO T-shirt at https://www.bonfirefunds.com/fiesta-island-dog-owners.
http://fidosd.org/
https://www.facebook.com/FIDOSD