The City of Kent is getting its first off-leash dog park. Located on East Hill between Morrill Meadows and East Hill Parks on Southeast 248th Street, the 3-acre site will have its Grand Opening 1 p.m. Oct. 23. In place of a traditional ribbon-cutting, Mayor Suzette Cooke will untie a string of colorful doggie bandanas to “unleash” the park and let the dogs take it over.
After numerous complaints about dogs roaming off-leash at Clark Lake Park, city staff met with community members and began the planning process in mid-2009 for an off-leash park. A volunteer group of dog owners formed to help raise funds and clear the area. Volunteers for DOGPARK (Dog Owners Group Promoting Animal Recreation in Kent) have dedicated most Saturday mornings since February to clear invasive and overgrown vegetation, then construct fencing.
The group secured a $10,000 grant from the Petco Foundation. Donations were also received from McLendon’s Hardware, The Home Depot, Tacoma Screw and Davis Wire.
The park has fenced areas for both large and small dogs.
For more information about the grand opening, call 253-856-5110.
Talk to us
Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.
To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.
