Asked the City Manager to work with the Community Development Department, the Department of Public Works and the Animal Commission to consider the cost and feasibility of improvements to the Danehy Dog Park

Designing and Managing Innovative Dog Parks

nrpa.org/parks-recreation-magazine/2018/november/designing-and-managing-innovative-dog-parks/ “How much more joy can you get out of life than being with your dog in a park?” asks Judy Trockel, one of the founders and driving forces for the past 25 years behind the dog park at Marymoor Park in King County, Washington.

Marymoor Park has been called the “Disneyland of Dog parks,” not because it is highly developed with attractions and amenities, but because it is considered by all who go there as just about the perfect park for dogs and people, as the nearly 800,000 visitors per year attest. Off-leash dog parks are one of the fastest growing type of parks in cities across the nation.

According to The Trust for Public Land, in its annual survey of the 100 largest cities, the number of dog parks has grown by more than 40 percent since 2009. NRPA’s 2018 Agency Performance Review data show that 55 percent of park and recreation agencies now have established dog parks, and, in conversations with directors of park and rec agencies, most agencies are either building a dog park or in the planning stage for one.

The National Pet Owners 2017–2018 Survey by the American Pet Products Association reports 60 percent of U.S. households own a dog. With ever-growing dog ownership by American households, park agencies across the country are seeing enthusiastic demand for more off-leash dog areas within public parks. Dog parks may be built as stand-alone parks or incorporated into existing larger parks. They are highly attractive to park visitors and often heavily used by residents and destination visitors.

The size of dog parks varies from as small as a small building lot to large areas that encompass hundreds of acres and provide access to trails, lakes, rivers and even ocean beaches. But, size and room to roam are only one criteria, perhaps not even the most important, of what makes a quality dog park. So, what are the characteristics of a great dog park? What amenities and features do people — and dogs — love in the parks they visit?

This article examines what makes a good dog park great from the perspective of the designer, the managing agency and volunteer stewards.

The Designer Perspective

“I design dog parks as I would a children’s playground,” says Ken Smith, principal of Ken Smith Design Workshop, an award-winning landscape architecture and design firm in the heart of New York City. “When I started in my profession, there was no body of literature on how to design dog parks. When I started my firm, we realized that there was a great desire for areas for dogs in public places. It came up in community board meetings and other forums, and it led to a demand for the city to provide areas for dogs.

As in other parks, the expectation is that we design areas for dogs, as well as we design them for people. “I thought that dog parks should be as interesting and fun as a well-designed children’s playground,” Smith continues. “I look at dog parks as a social space for both dog caretakers and the dogs themselves.” He believes that the philosophy of design is as important as what goes in the park. Smith points out that New York City presents some unique constraints for any type of public park space.

“We constantly adapt designs to fit spaces, and we try to get as much into the spaces as we can,” he explains. For dog parks, the key elements that must be in the space — shade, places for dogs to play, ramps and platforms of varying heights for dogs to jump and run, seating for people, water features and a dog-drinking area — all must be fit to the space in a harmonious way. It is important to fit other essential features in the design as well.

Smith notes that a good dog park needs a bulletin board because of the need to communicate with users and for users to know what is expected of them. In the East River dog park, Smith designed the bulletin board to fit in a cutout of a large, fake tree. Every dog park needs a storage shed, so, “We designed ours as an oversize dog house,” he adds.

Smith reports that during a community meeting, dog caretakers expressed a high concern about sanitation and, therefore, were very concerned about the type of surface that would be in the dog park. “No one was very excited about the idea of black asphalt, so we used brightly colored, highly durable tennis court paints to give it some life,” he says.

He believes that every space he designs for people should have an element of surprise and fun, and, therefore, added whimsical touches to what might otherwise be a utilitarian space.

The Park Agency Perspective

Phil Macchia is the director of Charleston County Parks and Recreation in South Carolina. The agency owns and manages the James Island County Park, a dog park that often appears in the top 10 lists of best dog parks in the country. Macchia says, “We have a huge influx of people from around the country who visit Charleston County and bring their dogs. We are in this business for people, and people have dogs.

That is just an extension of who we are — we are in the dog business, too.” According to Macchia, the visitation at their three dog parks, which are all located within larger regional parks, is steadily increasing. In addition, they are also seeing demand within infill development areas near downtown Charleston and areas where millennials are seeking to live. “Without question, use is growing,” he says.

“Our dog parks are as much a social gathering place as they are a place for people to recreate and exercise with their dogs. There is a lot of interest in small urban dog runs and mini-dog parks as well.” Macchia also notes that new urban housing and condo development are taking place where public open space is scarce, thus, there is a greater need for places for people and their dogs. The highest priorities for visitors to the department’s dog parks, as in other parks, are that they must be clean and sanitary.

“Shade is also a top priority,” Macchia says. “I can’t overestimate the importance of shade.” In addition, beyond having a place for dogs to exercise and run off-leash, there needs to be areas for people to socialize, whether under an umbrella, under natural shade, or sitting on benches and picnic tables.

“And, of course,” says Macchia, “you need to address all the basics — water for dogs and people, a good in- and-out system, well-designed gates and good, clear signage to communicate expectations.” They have separately fenced areas for large and small dogs, but Macchia notes that in their dog parks, the small dog areas get relatively little use. “We came to learn that people just didn’t like to be separated from the areas where all the action was,” he relates.