Peachtree City's athletic venues

and parks are going to the dogs, which normally wouldn't be a bad thing.

But more and more dog owners

are failing to clean up after their pets leave "deposits," and

that has drawn the ire of some citizens complaining to the Recreation

Department. Now, the City Council is considering an ordinance requiring

all pet owners to clean up after their pets in city parks.

Randy Gaddo, director of leisure

services for the city, said employees have approached several dog owners

about cleaning up after their pets, but that hasn't been effective. At

Thursday's City Council meeting, Gaddo said children using the athletic

fields in particular are coming into contact with "remnants of dogs

having been there."

"Now we're getting complaints

from the parents of kids, and they don't appreciate it," Gaddo said

of the uncollected doggie deposits.

The original version of the

ordinance would have banned pets from city athletic fields. But Councilman

Steve Rapson said he felt dogs and other pets shouldn't be banned from

the fields because many people take their pets there to recreate.

He said the part of the ordinance

requiring the cleanup behind pets would accomplish the same result. Council

essentially agreed and asked Gaddo to make changes to the ordinance for

consideration at a later date.

The ordinance also would ban

pets from specially surfaced tennis courts and basketball courts, although

recreation officials will allow the tennis courts at Pebblepocket Park

to be used by pets.

The problem is that pets scratch

the surfaces of tennis and basketball courts and their deposits leave

stains on the courts, Gaddo said.

"I guess the message to

citizens is ... if you can't be responsible enough to take care of it

yourselves, we'll have to legislate common sense somehow," Lenox

said. "But I hate to start there."

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