Halifax dog owners may soon be looking for another spot to take their pets, with city staff recommending in a report released Friday that the off-leash dog area in Africville Park be decommissioned.

The dog park could close by July 18. City council is set to vote on the recommendation Tuesday.

The Africville Heritage Trust says the park is on sacred land and wants people to take their dogs elsewhere. Dog owners say it's one of the few places in the city where they can let their animals run free in a fenced-in area.

Rachel Pelham and her Great Dane, Ninja, use the dog park every day. She says she understands the historical concerns people have, but wonders why it can't be for everybody to use.

"We're all using it now," she said. "I mean, the park is clean. Kids come here to picnic on a school bus and there are dogs here at the same time. They don't bother with them, the kids don't bother with the dogs. Yeah, really, why can't we share it?"