PORT ANGELES — The sound of dogs woofing and yipping for joy is expected to fill Lincoln Park on Friday, and most sunny days afterward, with the official grand opening of Port Angeles’ first off-leash dog park.
City parks officials and volunteers will be on hand for the 5:30 p.m. grand opening of the Port Angeles Off-Leash Dog Park, said Richard Bonine, Port Angeles recreation services manager.
Free food service, courtesy of Taco Time, will begin at 5 p.m.
Visitors with or without dogs are welcome.
The dog park is situated on about 1.85 acres of land in Lincoln Park on West Lauridsen Boulevard, just east of William R. Fairchild International Airport.
It has been available for use, free to visitors, for about two weeks, Bonine said.
The city of Port Angeles contributed about $10,000 for the fencing required for the park, while donations paying for construction-related costs brought in about $8,000, Bonine said.
Prizes, adoption
In addition to the food and the ceremony, volunteers will host fundraising events with prizes up for grabs, residents can sign up to be part of the Citizen Off-Leash Dog Park Committee, and the Olympic Peninsula Humane Society will be on hand with dogs up for adoption.
Port Angeles Mayor Cherie Kidd will throw out the “first fetch.”
The idea for the off-leash dog park has been around for years but really took off after Bonine started gathering public input on a comprehensive park master plan for the city, he said.
City recreation staff held numerous public meetings before the plan was finalized, and Bonine said requests for an off-leash dog park in the city were a common refrain during these meetings.
“Then the volunteer committee was formed, and they took the ball and ran with it,” Bonine said.
Fundraising for the park started about a year and a half ago, with fence and pipe installation at the park spanning the past three months, Bonine explained.
Restroom use
Visitors to the park will be able to use the restrooms, already part of the larger Lincoln Park complex.
“That’s one of the reasons we chose this location: because of the amenities that were already there,” Bonine said.
While canine companions will be the most visible beneficiaries of the park, Bonine said the park is meant for the enjoyment of both pet and owner.
Bonine said he’s glad the city will finally be able to provide an amenity Port Angeles residents have requested for years.
“Some people think it’s just for the dogs, but it’s really for the dog owners,” Bonine said.
“It’s a chance for people to socialize and meet other people with like interests.”
Because of the limit of 10 spaces in the parking lot immediately next to the park, Bonine encouraged attendees of the grand opening ceremony to arrive early and take advantage of the baseball field parking lots.
The park will be the North Olympic Peninsula’s second official free-run dog park.
The Sequim Dog Park, which opened in April 2007, covers a 1.7-acre area east of the Guy Cole Convention Center at Carrie Blake Park, 202 N. Blake Ave.
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Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.
