Officials break ground on Belmont County Dog Park
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ST. CLAIRSVILLE -- Officials broke ground on the Belmont County Dog Park project on Monday morning.
Sheriff David Lucas, who is spearheading the effort, said the project began last year. He hopes it will be completed this fall.
The dog park will be located directly behind the Belmont County Health Department, which is situated off Ohio 331 between Interstate 70 and Bannock.
Many dogs and their owners attended the groundbreaking including K-9s and K-9s in training from the sheriff's office, K-9 therapy dog Jersey who spends her days at the courthouse and dogs from the Road Home Animal Project.
According to a press release from the Belmont County Sheriff's Office, "the Belmont County Dog Park Project is a collaborative project of the Belmont County Commissioners, The Road Home Animal Project and the Belmont County Sheriff's Office."
Lucas said that he got inspiration for the project after taking his dog, Loki, to local dog parks.
"I'm very excited for this project," he said.
Lucas said the project will be completed at no cost to taxpayers. He said that funding for the project was made possible through a grant from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, along with community donations and money from fundraisers.
"The community has been really supportive," Sherri Van Tassel, outreach coordinator for the Belmont County Sheriff's Department, said.
Lucas explained that the dog park will be 155 square feet and will have two separate areas, one for small dogs and one for medium and large dogs.
Lucas also said that the park will have benches, a pavilion, shade trees, fire hydrants and a new fence around the property.
Lucas said that once the project is completed, he wants to host an opening ceremony event.
Warden David Gray of Belmont Correctional Institution said that inmates from the prison will be helping out with a large portion of the work. He said a crew of six incarcerated individuals is working on the project.
"They really seem to enjoy giving back to the community. They will be involved in every major part of the construction. I believe that it's important for the incarcerated to give back to the community, and this project allows them to pay back to society and give back in a direct way," Gray said.
Belmont County Commissioner J. P. Dutton said the commissioners provided the land for the dog park. He explained that the property already belonged to the county and was an existing county park.
"It's going to be a great asset to the county," Dutton said.
St. Clairsville Mayor Kathryn Thalman attended the event.
"This is a great day to start work on a dog park. Many hero dogs saved people's lives on 9/11, so it's really special to be celebrating dogs on this day," she said.
Thalman brought her own dog, Sammy, to the event.
"He's my best friend. He goes everywhere with me. He wakes me up in the morning," she said.
Chris Shriver, president of the Road Home Animal Project, said that the organization is partnering with the sheriff's department on the project. Shriver said that the park will allow dogs to get much-needed exercise.
"I always say a good dog is a tired dog. They can get into trouble if they don't get enough exercise," Shriver said.
Shriver explained that some dog owners may have health conditions and cannot take their dogs on long walks.
"The dog park will provide a place where people can just sit on a bench while their dog runs around," she said.
The Lowe's store at Ohio Valley Plaza in St. Clairsville is also partnering with the project.
"I was excited to have Lowe's partner with the dog park project to help minimize the fencing material costs and to add our manpower support," Ryan Hudson, St. Clairsville Lowe's manager, said.
Shriver said that people can make donations to the dog park project by writing a check to the Road Home Animal Project and writing "dog park" in the memo line. Shriver said that even after the project is completed, she hopes people make donations to help with the upkeep of the park.
The Road Home Animal Project's mailing address is P.O. Box 522, St. Clairsville. Donations can also be made on the Road Home Animal Project's website at theroadhomeanimalproject.org.