After almost a year of planning, the city’s new dog park is about to become a reality.
The Board of Aldermen Thursday approved not only locating the park at the corner of Nells Rock Road and Route 108, but also allocated up to $16,000 in Local Capital Improvement Program (LOCIP) funds to pay for the necessary fencing that will create space for both small and large dogs to romp safely.
“We are excited that we are finally going to have a place where dogs can play off leash and their owners can socialize,” said Dog Park Committee member Mandy Oram, who with her husband, Bill, and fellow committee member Lisa Gay cheered the board after the vote.
“We are dumbfounded to her applause,” joked board president John Anglace.“We don’t usually hear that here.”
Board member John Papa, who also chairs the Parks and Recreation Commission, said that the $16,000 figure was the lowest of the many bids they received for the fence work.
There also has been about $2,800 raised by the committee through the sale of memorial bricks and T‑shirts, he said.
“We also have volunteers who will help maintain it,” he said. “There are a lot of concerned and enthusiastic people willing to help, and I think this will be a great amenity for the city of Shelton.”
The park will abut city-owned open space that is part of the city’s Shelton Lakes Greenway. At one time consideration was given to also locating the planned new animal shelter there but ultimately it was determined that the two uses would be too much for the property. The new shelter will be built next to the existing shelter on Riverdale Avenue downtown.
The dog park will consist of two open areas, one for dogs over 25 pounds and the other for those under 25 pounds, Oram said.
“Small dogs can be intimidated by large dogs, and vice versa,” she said. The entire park will be double gated, she said, so one will enter the park and then have a choice of the two options.
There are more than a thousand dog owners in the city, she said, which equals a lot of excitement over the new park.
“We have been working toward this for 10 months,” she said. “This is a large community of dog-loving people who are hungry for a place to bring their pets.”
“All animal-related events have always been well attended,” Gay said, “and people are really looking forward to this.”
“My dog Toby would like to have a place to toss a ball that is safe and secure,” Bill Oram said.