Dog park will get upgrades
CRANBERRY TWP — Cranberry Township has gone to the dogs. Through a new group called Cranberry Area Canine Partners, the township is working with the community to improve the Rotary Dog Park and better serve dog owners.
“It's going really well,” said Nancy Hans, president of Cranberry Area Canine Partners. “I'm really pleased with the progress we've made so far.”
The township organized the group of residents during the summer and they began meeting monthly to talk about things that could be done to improve the dog park.
Pete Geis, Cranberry's director of parks and recreation, said they looked at the list of things the group wanted and already hit some low-hanging fruit.
“The No. 1 concern was poor drainage at the dog parks,” Geis said. “So the public works crew here took care of the drainage.”
The township also put up more signs at the park and installed lighting in the parking lot that shines on the entrances to the parks. The Rotary Dog Park at the Community Park consists of two large dog areas and one small dog area.
Also on the group's list was getting a shelter in the park for the dog owners. Early on Geis figured the township would have to work with a community group to pay for a shelter, but luck was on their side.
A man with one of the local homeowners' associations came to one of the Canine Partners' meetings and said his neighborhood had a 20-by-40-foot shelter they were looking to get rid of.
While the arrangements need to be finalized, Geis said the shelter will likely split the two large dog parks. They're still working on getting a shelter for the small dog park.
“Whether it rains or snows, the dogs need their exercise,” Hans said. “The humans will have a shelter to stand under so they're not brutalized by the weather.”
At the same time the shelter is put in, Geis said the public works crew will also remove the rough asphalt millings that are at the entrances to each of the three dog park areas and replace them with concrete.
Hans said the group is also conducting a survey online to see what type of agility course obstacles people would like to see in the park. Geis said an Eagle Scout is interested in adding some of these obstacles, so they are trying to get feedback to give him guidance.
The survey can be found at www.cranberrytownship.org/1146/Dog-Park.
The group is made up of a diverse mix of dog owners, from those who frequent the dog park to those who prefer other ways of exercising their pets, Hans said. The diversity has brought a great deal of knowledge and ideas to the table, she said.
“They've been really great and they've been from all different areas in terms of dog ownership and their dog needs,” Hans said. “Some have older dogs, some have multiple dogs, some have very athletic dogs. The mixture and diversity is very good.”
In the future, the group hopes to look into options for allowing dogs in other parts of the township's parks and offering more dog-related programming through the parks and recreation department.
Hans, who also is a dog trainer, is working with the township to develop obedience training programs for puppies and adult dogs. The township also has an upcoming pet first aid and CPR class on Nov. 18 and a pet photos with Santa session planned for Dec. 3.
The group can be reached on Facebook at “CranberryAreaCaninePartners”/ or by email at cranberryareacaninepartners@gmail.com. It meets at 6:30 p.m. the second Tuesday of each month in the Cranberry Township Municipal Center.
