Lakeland dog lovers cheer! Another dog park is coming to the city, this one located in the city’s downtown area.
The new park is called “Central Bark” Construction will begin in September and the park is expected to open by fall 2020. Estimated cost $350,000
Currently, downtown Lakeland residents we spoke to say there aren’t many places to take their dogs for fun and exercise.
“I can’t wait. I just cannot wait,” Denise Pech she said. “There’s a lot of dogs downtown. Here in the building where I live there are a lot of dogs, so that is going to be great.”
Parks and Recreation Director Bob Donahay said there was a big push four to five years ago from downtown residents to build a dog park. However, the group was only able to raise around $7,000.
Donahay said lack of funding held the project up.
“We did three dog parks in Lakeland and we were very successful with them,” he explained. “Thanks to our city manager and commission, we were able to move some things around to make this happen.”
“We’re not going to use grass,” he said. “We’re going to use artificial turf, which is very expensive but it makes so much sense because you can’t wear it out. Then you have modules for the dogs to run, to play up on, jump on,” Donahay said.
The dog park will be smaller than the city’s other parks. In addition, big and small dogs won’t be separated at “Central Bark.”