Accusations of conflict of interest and pandering to voters surfaced Monday night at a South Portland City Council workshop, as members debated whether dogs should be restricted or banned from Willard Beach this summer.

At issue was a proposal by Councilor Maxine Beecher to pass a law that would prohibit dogs from Willard Beach during the busy summer season or limit pet access to evening hours.

“For two decades dogs have ruled Willard Beach,” said Beecher, noting that pets are allowed on the beach all day during the winter and from 6-9 a.m. in the summer.

Responding to some complaints by beachside residents, Beecher asked fellow councilors whether they would be willing to amend city ordinances to restrict pet access to the city’s most popular beach.

She said the law could be temporary until a new city task force studying public use of Willard Beach is able to make formal recommendations to the City Council.

Because the meeting was a workshop, no council vote was taken.

The public also was not permitted to speak, although about two-dozen pet owners attended the meeting, which was held at the South Portland Community Center.

Beecher told her fellow councilors that she worries about the health and safety of beachgoers with young children, who may come in contact with dog droppings or urine in the sand.

Councilor Claude Morgan said he opposed the idea of amending laws before the new task force is able to do its work.

“We do well with a deliberative process,” he said. “We don’t want to jump in and move pieces around without a foundation to support it.”

Councilor Tom Blake echoed Morgan’s comments, adding “I’m a committee and process person. We need to let the stakeholders do their work first.”

Councilor Jim Hughes suggested he might be open to making a temporary change to existing law until the new task force completes its work.

Morgan and Councilor Jim Hughes have been tapped to co-chair the new Willard Beach task force, which is expected to organize and announce members next week.

But Beecher then raised new objections. She said that she had only recently learned from a constituent’s e-mail that Morgan is past president of the South Portland Dog Owners Group, which organizes members to speak out at City Council meetings for pet access to beaches and open spaces.

She questioned whether Morgan should co-chair the task force.

Councilor Linda Boudreau quickly supported Beecher’s statements, saying that an early order of business by the task force should be to discuss possible conflicts of interest by members.

Boudreau said she also was concerned by statements of some dog owners that they would refuse to re-elect councilors who tried to limit pet access on Willard Beach.

Boudreau further noted that both Hughes and Morgan are up for re-election this fall. She suggested that they may bow to pressure from the dog owners’ group, which numbers several hundred members.

Hughes responded angrily. He noted that during his last run for office, he won by more votes than the total number of registered dog owners in South Portland.

“I don’t give a damn what the (dog owners’ group) says,” Hughes said.

Mayor Jim Soule urged the members to adhere to courteous discourse, even as they disagree. “Our decisions need to be based on facts, not emotions,” he said.

Soule, who is charged with appointing committee chairs, said he chose Morgan for the work because Willard Beach is part of his district. He further noted Morgan’s work on the police hiring and retention task force, which led to reforms in the public safety department.

Likewise, Soule said, he respects Hughes’ work on several different city sub-committees, and thought he was well-suited for this group.

“The elections were the furthest thing from my mind when I made these appointments,” Soule said.

Soule expressed support for the new task force, saying that it needs time to do its work before law changes are made.

Soule said he agreed with an earlier statement by Blake that hundreds of dog owners are used to walking their pets early in the morning, and making an abrupt switch could cause further problems.

He also noted that many families with small children enjoy using the beach during the early evening hours, when the weather has cooled but the sun is still out.

Soule then asked Beecher whether she intended to make a formal proposal at the next City Council meeting to restrict or ban dogs from the beach.

“I haven’t made that decision yet,” she said.