LANSING - Angie Smith’s golden retriever, Neuman, could run freely in Lansing if a proposed dog park is included in the Parks and Recreation Department’s five-year master plan.
“A park specifically for dogs would be great,” the 27-year-old Lansing resident said. “When you’re at a dog park, people are there for one specific reason - their animals.
You wouldn’t run into people who would be offended if your dog was out with you.”
The dog park is one of several proposals being considered by Murdock Jemerson, director of Lansing’s Parks and Recreation Department.
“It is in the future,” Jemerson said of the park, which doesn’t have a planned location, price tag or regulations.
Human biology junior Cynthera McNeill, another dog owner, said the addition of a dog park would be nice, but only if certain conditions were met.
“I would want to know what kind of hours the park would have,” she said. “Because if I lived near it, I wouldn’t appreciate hearing any dogs barking after 10 p.m.”
She also hopes for separate areas for dogs with angry tendencies.
An informative meeting concerning the dog park will be held at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Potter Park Zoo Educational Center, 1301 S. Pennsylvania Ave. in Lansing.
Jemerson said he’s busy trying to update Lansing’s 110-plus parks.
“What we do is go through our park systems and list everything that needs to be done,” he said. “After they’re listed, we prioritize the improvements.”
Some improvements high on the park agenda include a plan to re-route the Lansing River Trail from I-496 to Spring Street, illuminate the Davis Park baseball fields, 5221 Wise Road, in Lansing, and construct a new restroom and concession facility at Kircher Park, 301 Clippert St. in Lansing.
“It’s the top facility for Lansing’s best local baseball,” Jemerson said.
Sharon Edgar, chief of the Grants Administration Division of the Department of Natural Resources, said Kircher Park was one of 48 state grant projects approved for $360,000 in December, and is awaiting approval.
Additional plans include a skate park for Lansing’s Ranney Park, near Frandor Shopping Center, and a new picnic pavilion with grills and interior walkways in Quentin Park, near the Pattengill and Barnes avenues intersection in Lansing.
