08/22/07
Construction Has Started On Blydenburg Dog Park!
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The fence is up around the Blydenburgh Dog Park and the Parks Dept. expects the dog park to be open in early September! The dog park includes both a small dog run and an area for large dogs. It is located on one-half of the Activity Field and in the adjacent woods near the campgrounds in the southern section of the park (the section accessible by Vets Hwy). The dog park is not yet open for use as a water fountain, benches, trash cans, bag dispensers and signs with the rules still need to be put in place. In fact, the gates into the run are currently locked. The Parks Dept. expects the work to be completed in early September and the dog park open for use at that time! LI-DOG is extremely happy that the 1.8-acre Blydenburgh dog park finally is close to becoming a reality. Leg. John Kennedy, with LI-DOG support, got the bill creating a dog park at Blydenburgh passed in October 2005. We are still concerned that the open area of the dog park-half the Activity field–is not big enough to accommodate all the running dogs we expect at Blydenburgh. LI-DOG had proposed a dog park that would cover the full Activity Field. As now constructed, the open field for large dogs is not quite one acre. In an effort to expand the space available for dogs to exercise, LI-DOG has asked the Parks Dept. to clear the underbrush and selected small trees from the wooded section of the new dog park. The area is now heavily overgrown and basically unusable. We had proposed a nature trail through the wooded section of the dog park, but this section is now very small and we believe dog owners would be better served by opening up the area by clearing the underbrush and leaving the large, mature trees for shade. At the same time, we remain committed to expanding the dog park on the Activity Field. The Parks Dept does not want to displace other park users, but our information is that the field is used only infrequently. In a recent meeting, Acting Parks Commissioner Tracey Bellone said she would keep an open mind about expanding the dog park. In the meantime, LI-DOG is extremely grateful to Leg. John Kennedy for championing a dog park at Blydenburgh County Park. If the usable space in the dog park can be expanded by additional clearing of underbrush, this will be a great space for dog owners and their dogs-both big and small–to play and socialize! WHAT YOU CAN DO: Email Leg. John Kennedy at john.kennedy@suffolkcountyny.gov or call him at 631-854-3735 and thank him for working to create the new dog park at Blydenburgh County Park. Better yet, thank Leg. Kennedy publicly by writing a Letter to the Editor to one of the three Smithtown newspapers at:
Leg. Kennedy has been a good supporter of LI-DOG’s goal of increasing dog parks and we want to make sure he knows how much we appreciate what he has done for dog owners! Also, please let LI-DOG know at lidog_news@yahoo.com what you think of the new dog park and any suggestions you have for improving it. Let us know how often you see other groups using the Activity Field. The more information we have on how often-or how infrequently–the field is used, the better our chances of expanding the dog park! |