By By BETTY MITCHELL GRAY
Staff Writer
Chevy, Scusi, Toby and Pickles were among the first canines to use Washington’s new off-leash dog park.
The park officially opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by city leaders, parks and recreation employees and about a dozen dogs and their owners Tuesday. The ceremony was the culmination of a year-long effort by Rebecca Clark, Monica Ferrari, Stacey Pack and other members of the Washington Off-Leash Dog-Park Initiative.
The park, located at the corner of East Fourth and Brown streets near Jack’s Creek was built with private funds on land bought by with Federal Emergency Management Agency funds and given to the City of Washington with the stipulation that no structures such as residences and businesses be built on it. The park includes areas for small dogs less than 20 pounds and larger dogs to roam off-leash within fenced areas, water fountains for the dogs and trash cans and plastic bags for waste disposal. The park is open during daylight hours. Park regulations stipulate that owners must accompany their dogs within the park.