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April 19, 2005
Pics from our Opening Day
Posted by Gwen at 10:51 PM
April 17, 2005
Video on WZZM 13
Cute clip from our event yesterday... Watch it now!
Posted by Gwen at 03:37 PM
What a success! Thank you!
Thanks for making our big opening a huge success! If you came out yesterday to the opening of the new Pet Supplies Plus Off-leash Dog Area at Hillcrest Park – I hope that you enjoyed yourself and your dog had fun! It was great to see all the people and dogs interacting and having a great time.
Pet Supplies Plus (www.mypetsuppliesplus.com) gave away a lot of great merchandise and coupons and Harbor Humane Society (www.harborhumane.org) may have adopted out three dogs.
We’d also like to thank all the volunteers that helped out yesterday – it would not have been a success without your help – thank you!
We would also like to ask that everyone do what you can to help continue its success, especially over the next few weeks. Please stop by and help us monitor how things are going. We need your help picking up trash and reminding dog owners of the park rules. (The city has not installed all of the signage and amenities yet.)
Enforcing the rules will be especially important, like if someone is not cleaning up after their dog, ask him or her if they need a bag. Or if someone brings food into the park, let him or her know that it may start a dog scuffle. Don't hesitate to let someone know if they are not following the rules -- this is a public park.
Here are the rules again for your reference:
1. Always clean up after your dog.
2. Dogs must be current on all shots and display proper tags including current identification information, license and rabies.
3. Supervise your dog closely; never leave your dog unattended. Dogs must be under your voice control at all times.
4. No dogs younger than four months allowed because of inoculation requirements.
5. No more than three dogs per owner. (This will be updated to two shortly.)
6. It is recommended that all dogs be spayed or neutered.
7. If your dog becomes unruly or plays too rough, please leash him/her and leave immediately.
8. Fill in any hole your dog digs.
9. No smoking or food in the off-leash area.
10. For safety reasons, please remove pinch and spike collars before entering.
11. Please supervise children closely at all times.
Owners are liable for any damage or injury inflicted by their dogs.
Thanks again and enjoy your new dog park!
Posted by Gwen at 01:26 PM
April 11, 2005
Grand Rapids’s first off-leash dog park set to open
• Privately funded dog park becomes a reality
• Pet Supplies “Plus”® Dog Area at Hillcrest Park opens on Saturday, April 16
The area’s first fenced-in off-leash dog park on public property – officially designated as the “Pet Supplies ‘Plus’® Dog Area at Hillcrest Park” – will open this Saturday, April 16, 10 a.m., at the intersection of Lyon and Benjamin N.E. Grand opening festivities include: a leash-cutting ceremony, “the running of the dogs,” throwing out the opening-day dog biscuit, special displays, a dog nutritionist, a groomer/trainer, as well as free samples from several major dog products manufacturers.
Further, BISSELL® Homecare, Inc. will have a pet products giveaway drawing along with free samples of its pet cleaning formulas. The Harbor Humane Society of Grand Haven will have pets available for adoption. And representatives of the Kennel Clubs that comprise the Harvest Cluster Dog shows from Kent, Ottawa and Muskegon Counties will also be present.
The off-leash area, a 1+ acre shaded area within Hillcrest Park is the result of nearly two years of site reviews, public meetings, and fund-raising activities culminating in major donor support from area retailer Pet Supplies “Plus”.
The vision for the park and the fund drive was spearheaded by a taskforce of local citizens – the Grand Rapids Dog Park Enthusiasts (GRDPE) – formed in 2002. The group worked with the Grand Rapids Parks and Recreation Department and area businesses to help realize this dream of dog lovers and their pooches. In addition to Pet Supplies “Plus”, the group received significant support from: BISSELL Homecare, Inc., the Gerber Foundation, Plenty Creative, Integra Printing, and Agio Imaging of Kalamazoo. Additionally, over 150 individual contributors helped underwrite the effort with amounts ranging from $5.00 to $5,000.
Jay Steffen, Director of Grand Rapids Parks and Recreation Department, said, “This process shows what can happen when government, business and committed citizens join forces. All parties can proudly point to this park as a site that makes Grand Rapids a better community for people and their pets.”
During the fall of 2003, GRDPE worked with the Parks and Recreation Department to develop a full set of objectives, site criteria, and dog park rules. “We reviewed other dog parks across the country and determined the features that were especially appropriate for our community and budget,” said Dottie Rhodes, GRPDE member. “However, the City’s budget cuts forced us to shift gears and move from our role as an advisory group into a full fund-raising mode.”
On August 10, 2004 after an open review with the Fulton Heights Neighborhood Association, the City designated the site at Hillcrest Park.
“Our business is helping people and their pets nurture one another,” said Jill DeJager. Executive Assistant, Pet Supplies “Plus”. “An off-leash park is a great way for pets to become well-socialized and properly exercised. We wanted to help make it happen.”
Posted by Gwen at 08:27 AM
April 05, 2005
Hillcrest Park Location
The Pet Supplies Plus Off-leash Dog Area at Hillcrest Park is located on the northeast side of Grand Rapids, at the intersection of Lyon and Benjamin NE. (It's also the upper portion of Fuller Park.) There is parking available at Hillcrest as well as plenty of street parking, or you can park your car at Fuller Park and walk to Hillcrest.
Map & Directions (via MapQuest)
Map & Directions (via Google Satellite)
Posted by Gwen at 12:55 PM
April 03, 2005
We're on the radio!
Check out these great radio spots from Pet Supplies Plus about the new dog park. They will run for ten days beginning April 4 on three stations: 95.7 FM W-Lite WLHT; 100.5 FM The River WTRV; and 1410 AM La Maquina Musical WNWZ.
English (2.4MB mp3)
Español (2.4MB mp3)
Posted by Gwen at 07:12 PM
Volunteers Needed
Grand Rapids Dog Park Enthusiasts need volunteers for the opening day of the off-leash area at Hillcrest Park on Saturday, April 16th from 10 am to 4 pm.
Volunteers will need to make patrons aware of the rules and help out with letting the dogs in and out of the area. Shifts would be 10 to noon, noon to 2 pm and 2 pm to 4 pm. You'll receive a free Grand Rapids Dog Park Enthusiasts t-shirt!
If you'd like to help with the event, please e-mail your name and desired shift to info@grdogpark.com.
Posted by Gwen at 07:02 PM