Kenai City Council members on Wednesday voted unanimously to make a planned city dog park a little bit bigger. An additional .53 acres was donated to park organizers, bringing the park’s total footprint from .91 acres to just under 1.5 acres.
A community dog park in Kenai has been years in the making. Kenai City Council members approved in 2018 the use of part of Daubenspeck Family Park, near Walmart, for the park. The project has been spearheaded by community members, some of whom were present at Wednesday’s meeting.
Organizers said the additional space would make the park more accommodating for dogs and their owners, while some council members said the city has already donated land and money to the volunteers.
Crystal Locke, one of the park organizers, said during a Wednesday presentation requesting the additional land that space for agility equipment and bigger dogs are among the reasons more area is needed. The American Kennel Club suggests dog parks be at least 1 acre in size, Locke said.
In addition to the agility equipment and fetch space, Locke said the park will also include a secure entry for people to remove their dog’s leash, a separate park area for smaller dogs and a pavilion covering both entrances.
City administration laid out a “project path to completion” for the dog park in a March 8 memo provided to city council members by Kenai City Manager Paul Ostrander.
Needed work includes contracting a survey to assess the cleared area and location of fence posts and the determination of to what extent community members want to expand the park’s footprint. Additionally, a project completion schedule and budget are needed. If, through the process, it is discovered more money is needed for the park, it would fall on the city council to approve additional funds, Ostrander wrote.
Council member Teea Winger, who sponsored the resolution along with Kenai Vice Mayor Jim Glendening, said that a dog park would be a valuable addition to the city’s parks and recreation catalog.
“I mean this is going to be an amazing feature for our community and we have the chance to start to make sure that they have the footprint that they need to have everything that would manage a successful park,” Winger said.
Council member Henry Knackstedt said the city should consider finishing the chunk of land that has already been approved for the project before adding to the acreage.
“Right now, I think it’s important to complete what we’ve started,” Knackstedt said.
He successfully amended the legislation to say that funding and installation of new fencing needed for the additional land will be funded and installed by volunteers. Locke said they expect an additional 366 feet of fencing will be needed for the area.
Council member Glenese Pettey said she has reluctantly supported previous requests from dog park organizers, but that another ask always comes up. She added that she’s looking forward to the park’s completion “without any additional ask.”
“There’s this additional ask of another half acre, ‘If you’ll just give me one more half acre, then we’re golden,’” Pettey said. “Well, I thought we were golden on the first ask (and) now we’re into the fourth ask.”
To-date, the city has put $88,000 into the park and it’s possible more money will be needed. Council members approved $25,000 in the city’s fiscal year 2022 budget for fencing at the park. Park organizers told council members last October that the $25,000 had been fully expended on fencing, but the 4-foot-tall fence would not be tall enough to accommodate large dogs and, rather, a 6-foot-tall fence would be needed.
An additional $63,000 sum was approved in January by council members after heated debate. Those who supported the additional $63,000 donation for the project said it was needed to help address some of the more sophisticated work needed for the park, while those opposed questioned the fiscal responsibility of the process.
Wednesday’s full city council meeting can be viewed on the City of Kenai’s YouTube channel.
Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.
