No topic ignites cooperators’ blood pressure like dogs. Love them, hate them, people have very strong feelings about whether dogs belong in our coop, and raising the topic at any annual meeting or meet-the-candidates night is a guaranteed show-stopper.

But being afraid to talk about something doesn’t make it go away. And over the last few years legal battles about dogs at East River have cost the coop over $1.2 million and made us the target of a federal anti-discrimination lawsuit. It’s time now to decide what pet policy is in the coop’s best interest, and the most effective way to enforce that policy.

Cooperatively Yours is hosting an open meeting for all cooperators on Monday, June 1 in the community room at 7:00 pm. The goal of this working session will be to develop two policy proposals that can be presented to all shareholders for a vote. Given the cost involved, this is a conversation all of us should be a part of.