Dog parks, library security explored at hearings

The Cranston City Council Finance Committee heard the budget plans for the parks and recreation and public library systems on Monday night, which included discussion on potential locations for dog parks and enhanced security at the library.

Several city councilmen, starting with city-wide councilman Ken Hopkins, brought on the topic of dog parks, an idea that has been explored but never given a concrete timeline or location. Now, it could be locations.

Parks and recreation director Tony Liberatore said that he has explored three different dog park locations, and the idea for multiple parks was endorsed across the board.

“Rather than a wish list, someone’s got to come up with an ordinance to say we’re going to have a dog park in that spot right there or that spot right there and build the damn thing,” Liberatore said. “It’s got to be done.”

Council President Michael Farina concurred that it has been long enough, saying that it is “time to stop talking about it and just do it.”

Though Liberatore said he still has to go look at each of the proposed areas, the first lot would be off Ashmont Street. The second would be near the Cranston Ice Rink, to the left of the Cranston dog pound. To the left of the lot used for its dogs’ exercise is another wide-open area that could be converted into a dog park.

The third would be near Cranston ARC on Dyer Avenue. Liberatore said he would work on producing prices for the council, since Hopkins offered a “promise” that the parks would be on the next agenda.

After parks and recreation was finished, Libraries Director Ed Garcia stepped in for his hearing. The central focus of his discussion with council centered on an allotment of $40,000 to pay a full-time security guard for 42 hours a week at the Central Library on Sockanossett Cross Road.

“Security concerns at Central Library have increased,” Garcia said. “I cannot say if they’re coming from Harrington Hall. Everyone is welcome and a lot of the gentlemen that come in are not a problem. We’ve had issues in the last year and a half with narcotics, opioids or alcohol passing out outside the library, and we need police and fire to come get them.”

Garcia said that Central and Auburn have already installed surveillance cameras on their property. While Auburn deals more with vandalism or graffiti issues, Central has had difficulty with sometimes “belligerent” patrons.

Adding a full-time security guard, who would be unarmed and work between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, Garcia said would alleviate an unnecessary burden on the staff to deal with these issues.

“Security will not only clamp down on some of these incidents but provide another deterrent for some of the behavior that we’ve been seeing,” Garcia said.

The security guard line item gained support across the council

“I definitely will support that,” Farina said.

“I’m tickled pink to see you have a security guard coming in there,” city-wide councilman John Lanni Jr. added.