In Sammamish parks, dogs must be leashed (no longer than 16 feet) except in designated off-leash areas. The city also adopts King County's animal code, which treats a dog 'at large' off the owner's premises as a public nuisance. Beaver Lake Park has an official off-leash dog area.
Sammamish regulates dogs in two ways. First, its own park rules in SMC Chapter 7A.15 (Pets and Animals) require that, except in a designated off-leash area, dogs and other domestic animals be kept on a leash no longer than 16 feet and under control. Dogs may run off-leash only in a city-designated off-leash dog park or area, or in a park during designated off-leash hours, while under the owner's control. Beaver Lake Park is the city's officially listed off-leash dog park; in all other park areas and trails dogs must be leashed, and owners must dispose of pet waste in a trash receptacle. Second, Sammamish has adopted King County Code (KCC) Title 11 by reference through SMC 11.05, with 'county' references read as the City of Sammamish and enforcement by Regional Animal Services of King County (RASKC). Under that code, a dog 'at large' (off the owner's premises and not under control of a competent person) is a public nuisance except in designated off-leash areas, obedience training, or lawful hunting. The 16-foot leash limit is a Sammamish-specific park rule; the broader at-large/nuisance framework comes from the adopted King County code.
At-large dogs are a public nuisance under the adopted King County code and may be impounded by RASKC; owners pay redemption and kenneling fees to reclaim a dog. Park leash and waste violations are enforced under SMC Title 7A. Penalties follow the King County District Court bail/bond schedule referenced in the Sammamish code.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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Sammamish does not prohibit backyard composting, and curbside yard waste/compost collection is available citywide. Curbside garbage, recycling, and yard-wast...
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Artificial turf is allowed in Sammamish and counts as 'yard area' for landscaping purposes. However, the city's surface water rules (based on the King County...
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Sammamish encourages native and drought-tolerant landscaping and requires it in certain contexts. The landscaping code (SDC 21.07.070) calls for drought-tole...
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Rainwater harvesting is legal in Sammamish and across Washington. Under a 2009 Washington Department of Ecology policy, collecting rooftop rainwater for on-s...
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The City of Sammamish runs no water utility and imposes no mandatory citywide watering restrictions. Water comes from special-purpose districts — chiefly Sam...
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Sammamish does not set a numeric weed-height limit, but its landscaping standards (SDC 21.07.070) prohibit any plant on the King County noxious weed list acr...
Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in King County.
See how other cities in King County handle dog leash laws.
See how Sammamish's dog leash laws rules stack up against other locations.
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