Newport’s popular dog park was forced to close earlier this year due to overcrowding and infrastructure issues, which lead to greener pastures.
The community teamed up with the City of Newport to raise funds and resources to reopen the park even bigger and better than before — just 500 feet away behind the Campbell County Library’s Newport Branch.
“The development of the new park is a great example of local government and the community coming together to work on a major improvement for the entire city,” said Newport City Manager Tom Fromme in a press release.
The off-leash dog park, located at 901 E. Sixth St., is twice the size as the former park and features a separate space for small dogs. Concrete pathways and community walking paths wind throughout the park along with “pet-friendly benches” and landscaping, plus a water fountain and plumbing. The new park also features a dedicated parking area for visitors.
“A tremendous amount of credit goes to the Newport Board of Commissioners, the City Manager Tom Fromme for seeing this vision and working collaboratively with me and the neighborhood, Assistant City Manager Larisa Sims for convincing the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet to allow the city to use the land for the park, and Community Services Director Doug Roell for enabling and managing the process of developing the park,” East Row resident Tim Appleton said in the same press release.
Funding from The Newport Foundation and the City of Newport, along with The East Row Historic Foundation and other local companies contributed to the finalization of the new park. In addition to finances, labor and material was donated by the community and city.
“A lot of our local residents stepped in by not only donating and raising money, but also by helping get rid of the trash and overgrowth so we could open the area up,” Appleton said.
And while the park is now open and welcoming pets and their humans, in order to keep up with the beautiful new space, they will continue to need the community’s help.
“With an annual operating expense of $5,000 or more, fundraising is required to maintain operations of the park and pay for any future improvements. Every dollar will make a difference and will go toward the Dog Park,” Appleton said.
You can donate online or purchase a personalized brick to support the park.
This article appears in The Gift Guide.