43
GOING to the DOGS
Photo
Todd Shaffer, Austintown Township Park supervisor, hopes to have a fenced-in dog park ready for use before the end of winter.
By Elise Franco
and Ashley Luthern
AUSTINTOWN
After having no enclosed dog parks, Mahoning County soon will be home to two — one in Austintown, the other in Boardman.
Todd Shaffer, Austintown Township Park supervisor, said plans for a fenced-in dog park should be completed no later than spring, though he hopes to have it ready for use before the end of winter.
“A dog park has been in demand here for a number of years,” he said. “There aren’t too many around here, and the majority of the walkers are out here with dogs.”
The park currently has a small fenced-in section on one trail where dogs are allowed off a leash, though Shaffer said it’s not the ideal spot for that type of activity.
He said that area is boxed in by a densely wooded area, which keeps larger dogs at bay but does allow smaller dogs to escape through. He also said the area is difficult for many people to find.
“That area is out in the middle of nowhere,” he said. “We want the dog park to be in a place that’s easily accessible.”
Shaffer said the 300-by-120-foot area will be on the northeast side of the park, to the left of the No. 1 baseball field.
The dog park will include a drinking area, washing station and play equipment, he said.
Shaffer said they’ve just begun the planning phase, and he doesn’t yet have a definitive cost, though he expects the total bill to be about $20,000. Included in that cost is $4,500 earmarked for a 5-foot-high fence. He said they’ll also need to run a waterline into the dog park area, but it will be a minimal cost.
Shaffer said park employees will do most of the labor themselves.
He said the project will be paid for using the township park’s budget.
Wendy and Mark Lyden of Youngstown are two dog walkers who use the park every day.
Wendy said they bring their three dogs to walk on the trail and are excited about plans for the dog park.
“It’s really cool because so many people who come here have dogs,” she said.
Shaffer said it’s important to him to provide the public with amenities they’re asking for. “Ultimately they’re the ones using it and paying for it.”
In Boardman Park, plans for a privately funded new dog park are moving forward.
“The trick has been waiting for clean fill dirt, which we were hoping to get donated — and two construction projects have donated. We will start grading the area over the next week or two,” said Jason Loree, who co-founded Friends of Paws Town, a nonprofit organization that raises money for the dog park.
The park has been named Marge Hartman’s Paws Town after Marjorie Hartman, whose foundation donated $60,000 for construction of the park. The PetCo Foundation, J. Ford Crandall Foundation and The Grace Davis Charity donated $5,000 each, and the Centers for Hearing Care donated $1,000.
Those funds have been earmarked for items such as waste dispensers, benches and similar equipment. The Marjorie Hartman Family Foundation donation is set aside for construction. Loree said he hopes the park will be open in late summer or early this fall.
Paws Town has ordered fountains, trash cans and have priced out mulch. The dog park will be gated with two areas — one for small dogs, one for large dogs — and have small play equipment, a wash station and other amenities, Loree said.
Paws Town has an annual membership fee, and all dogs will be required to have current vaccinations and be spayed and neutered.
“The park is looking at an annual membership fee between $20 and $40. ... We’re exploring payment options for multiple dogs in a family. Members would have a key to get into the park,” Loree said.
There also are plans for Paws Town to have a 24-hour security footage that can be viewed as a live stream online.
Loree said he wants nonprofit organizations to use the dog park for events and said vaccination and behavioral clinics will be offered.
“We want it to be a central point for dog lovers and pet organizations in the Mahoning County,” Loree said.