I live in the neighbourhood of Dr. F.D. Sinclair Elementary School.
One recent Saturday afternoon I took my eight-month-old son for some much-needed outdoor fun at the school’s playground. From my knowledge the grounds are open to public from dusk till dawn (with use at your own risk of course).
We entered the grounds through an open gate located on 74 Avenue and played for about half an hour. As we were playing I noticed that a pit bull was approaching us with no owner in sight. The dog had no collar and seemed to have targeted us. It was coming up on us pretty fast so I put my son back in his stroller and attempted to leave the school grounds through the front parking lot area, only to find out that there is absolute no way out.
The yard at that end is completely fenced in with six foot fences and all main doors are padlocked. To me, this seems like a major safety issue as there are no signs on the 74 Avenue end of the grounds saying that gates are locked.
Thank God the dog seemed to be friendly and we never got attacked. When I went to the school to ask about this issue they told me that they lock up the yard to prevent parties after hours.
I think something should be done about this... either have a way out or lock all gates on the grounds with signs saying the school yard is closed while not in session.
We are lucky nothing bad happened, but I don’t want anyone else to be in danger.
Keri Harding, Surrey