LITTLE ROCK — The MacArthur Park working group will begin soliciting donations for construction of a dog park in downtown Little Rock that is expected to begin by the third quarter of this year.
Fundraising ideas and possible features for the dog park were discussed during a Saturday afternoon meeting at the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History.
An off-leash area for dogs to run and get some exercise within the city limits is part of the $15.8 million MacArthur Park master plan, which includes a new street and other features throughout the park.
No decisions were made Saturday, but working-group members were presented with a number of ideas for the dog park and potential costs.
MacArthur Park is bounded roughly by East Ninth Street on the north, Interstate 630 on the south, South Commerce Street on the west and McMath Avenue on the east. The 32-acre park is the city’s oldest and is home to the Arkansas Arts Center.
The proposed dog park would be built at the south- ern end of MacArthur Park between the William H. Bowen School of Law to the east and the Interstate 630 pedestrian bridge to the west. The dog park would be bounded on the south by the interstate and on the north by a new road — Pulaski County Lane — being built through the park in the first phase of the park’s master plan.
Sharon Priest, executive director of the Downtown Little Rock Partnership and chairman of the working group, said members will raise funds for the project with special events and by soliciting donations from local businesses.
“The Mac[Arthur] Park group — if nothing, we are ambitious,” Priest said. “We’ve been able to do what we’ve done thus far because we’ve built partnerships with people. And that’s what we’re trying to do here today.”
Keith Canfield, a workinggroup member who has been leading the design campaign for the dog park, presented the “plain vanilla” plan, which will cost about $30,000, and then described the possible addition of splash pads, dog-washing stations and lighting.
“There’s everything from a $5,000 solution to a $50,000 solution,” Canfield said.
MacArthur Park will receive $500,000 for improvements from the city’s sales-tax increase approved last year, and working-group members said they hope some of that will be used to build the dog park. But the group said it plans to raise money to match the funding currently available from the city and build the dog park as quickly as possible.
The “plain vanilla” plan without additional features would include 5- to 6-foot-tall fences around the borders, a shorter fence to outline a “small dog” area and watering stations, Canfield said.
The dog park would be maintained by the city Parks and Recreation Department, he said.
The proposed dog park would be similar in size to the one at Murray Park on Rebsamen Park Road, the only other full-size, off-leash dog park in Little Rock.
In addition to working on the development of the dog park, Priest said, the working group is planning the construction of multiuse courts and playground areas at Mac-Arthur Park. She said she hopes the new features will attract people from downtown and around the city.
“This is a very unique park,” Priest said. “It’s sort of a neighborhood park and sort of a regional park. And we want it to be a wonderful destination for people to come and take their dogs out and have a good time.”
Arkansas, Pages 13 on 04/01/2012