The Fiesta Island Park general development plans are expected to come to a head during the Mission Bay Park Committee’s (MBPC) planned monthly meeting on Tuesday, July 6. The meeting is scheduled to take place at 6 p.m. inside the Marina Village Captains Room, 1936 Quivira Way. In the fall of 2006, the San Diego Park and Recreation Department held a public meeting explaining plans to develop Fiesta Island. Shortly after, a group of dog owners banded together to express disapproval of the development plans, fearing they would lose the off-leash dog area at Fiesta Island. The majority of concerns were safety, loss of contiguous space, loss of shoreline access and the cost to tax payers. The group formed the Fiesta Island Dog Owners (FIDO), a nonprofit corporation whose members support its efforts to maintain ample off-leash space at the park. “It should have been a one- to two-year project at most,” said Mike Singleton, project manager and president of KTU+A, a planning and landscape architecture firm. No action will be taken at the informational meeting, according to MBPC officials. It will only be an opportunity for the MBPC to view the updated plans, Singleton said. There will still be time to debate the plans, he said. Singleton also said he does not anticipate MBPC granting its approval or rejection until at least September. At that point, the plans would need to be approved by the City Council because of the unique nature of dog use at the park, Singleton said. Jean Spengel, a veterinarian and former owner of the La Jolla Veterinary Hospital and active board member of FIDO, said the group has conceded prior demands and is mainly focused on keeping a 90-acre section of land on the southwest portion of the island for unleashed dogs. One of the group’s main concerns is the construction of a road leading to parking lots that will bisect the off-leash area, she said, which FIDO members consider unsafe. Bocce ball courts and a children’s play area will also be contained in the unleashed dog area. FIDO members are concerned that placing a children’s play area inside the off-leash area for dogs could lead to future problems, Spengel said. “We have compromised and given up a great portion of the island,” Spengel said. For FIDO members, it isn’t just about San Diego residents. The area draws in a healthy share of tourists, too. “It’s really the only area in Southern California where you can let your dogs loose and go,” Spengel said. Since 1972, Fiesta Island has been an off-leash area for dogs set up by a city ordinance, Spengel added. FIDO members would like to aid the preservation of the area by acquiring corporate sponsorships to assist in the financial upkeep of the land. “We would like to become stewards of the area,” Spengel said. The people who use Fiesta Island enjoy something a little more primitive that takes them away from the city, she said, and FIDO considers itself the largest group of users in the area spread across 365 days a year. “We really hope that we and the city can come to a compromise,” Spengel said. Scott Reese, assistant director of the San Diego Park and Recreation Department, said there are many groups like cyclists, paddlers and skiers who also use the island and need to be considered in the adaption of plans as well. Reese said he is optimistic that the updated plans will reflect a good design and offer solutions for all users. For more information, visit www.fidosd.org or www.sandiego.gov.