Not long after I had first moved to Chestnut Hill about 20 years ago, I decided to take a walk in Pastorius Park. It was a warm, early fall Sunday morning. I bought a bagel with cream cheese at, if memory serves, the old Brueggers Bagels (now Cosimo’s Pizza).

Not long after I sat down on a bench to take a bite, there was a pretty big dog on my lap trying to remove the bagel from my hand. I gently pushed the dog away. I wasn’t really that upset; just wanted to make sure I was the one to eat my breakfast.

This led to a small argument with the dog’s owner who wasn’t happy I had “shoved” his dog. Never mind I was simply sitting on a bench. Before he huffed off, I made a simple case for myself:

“Buddy, I’m just trying to sit on a bench and eat a bagel.”

But as far as the dog owner was concerned, I was the one who didn’t belong. Pastorius Park had gone to the dogs.

This appears to be a consensus among many in Chestnut Hill, some who have had much worse run-ins with dogs and their owners in the park. Many have responded to last week’s story about a dog attacking a Hiller in the park by saying they won’t enter Pastorius for that very reason. People can’t sit on park benches. Children can’t play ball. It’s not safe.

It’s time to take Pastorius Park back for two reasons.

The first, and most obvious, is that it’s likely just a matter of time before a dog attacks a person who will get hurt very badly. Imagine if it had been toddler attacked by the dog who bit Caroline King? Many of us would be wringing our hands now wondering why we hadn’t done more sooner.

The second reason is that Pastorius Park is a really terrific neighborhood asset that right now is largely avoided by people who don’t want to fight off wayward dogs. Most of these dogs are friendly. But that’s not always the case.

Fortunately, the solution is simple. Pastorius Park is big. There is plenty of room for a large fenced in area. A proper dog park where owners could let their dogs run off leash legally and safely. King has told the Local she is trying to do just that. In my conversation this week with Roxborough Dog Park president Carlos Nunez, he offered to meet with any group who wanted to begin a similar effort, if for no other purpose than to describe the ups and downs his group experienced in the years it planned and fundraised before opening.

Chestnut Hill is a neighborhood with a lot of good dog owners and a lot of talent, from organizers and fundraisers to architects and planners. A group here is likely capable of building a model dog enclosure that could be the best in the city.

A dog park in Pastorius park is a no-brainer. It’s time to make it happen.

-- Pete Mazzaccaro