Dog owners desperate to retain a shady open space to walk their furry friends off-leash in Cromwell are commissioning an independent arborist report to determine whether a stand of pine trees poses a significant risk to public safety.

Central Otago District Council is set to fell two blocks of pine trees close to town currently designated as dog exercise spaces, but dog owners are lobbying to retain at least a corner of the larger of the two blocks.

On Tuesday, group representative Lisa Telle told the Cromwell Community Board 685 people were funding an approved council contractor to visit the site and complete their own report.

She said the report would be delivered to the council by April and she hoped it would “stop the rush to fell those pines”.

Late last year the council approved a staff recommendation to remove approximately 80 hectares of plantation pine across the two sites on Sandflat Rd and Bannockburn Rd.

At the time, staff said the Bannockburn Rd site was set for development - so the trees needed to go - and it would be practical and cost-effective to clear the 40-year-old Sandflat Rd block at the same time.

In a statement issued last year, the council said proceeds from the harvest were proposed to fund either replanting at the Sandflat Rd site or to support investigations into alternative investment opportunities.

The council also confirmed both areas would become no-go dog zones for now.

Lisa previously told the community board the two pine blocks made up the vast majority of Cromwell’s off-leash dog exercise space.

She said the sites provided shaded areas where dogs could be exercised away from roads, cycleways and playgrounds, and in some cases away from other dogs.

Alternative areas suggested by the council - Alpha St and Dustin Park in Pisa Moorings - were unsuitable, she said.

Lisa said those spaces were too small, lacked shade and created potential conflict with other users.

Read more: Cromwell pine harvest to proceed despite petition

Have a story to share or comment to make? Contact editor@centralapp.nz