It’s Looking Doggone good at the Canton Dog Park!

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 If you’re a regular at the Canton Dog Park, then you may have noticed some changes this Spring. The CCA is excited to share that the Friends of Canton Dog Park has been working with Baltimore City Rec n Parks (BCRP), Coppermine, and neighborhood volunteers to implement some much-needed repairs. 

During the pandemic, the Canton Dog Park (CDP) understandably experienced some disrepair. As many city agencies were short-staffed, the problems went unresolved. This Spring, some CCA Board members and Friends of Canton Dog Park volunteers were inspired to come together to bring attention to the park and kickstart the process of the repairs. 

CCA Board Member Jayne Miller with an assist from CCA Marketing Co-Chair Julie M. Kichline led the effort. Jayne, who has been dedicated to chairing the FCDP for many years, was joined by new CCA President Amanda Bourgeois in the attempt to get a new liaison to Baltimore City Rec N Parks (BCRP). Simultaneously, Julie started a social media and print campaign to engage the community and recruit new members for the Friends of Canton Dog Park Committee. Backed by “Park Ranger Tony” and neighborhood volunteer Allie Marsden, they began to make some progress. First up, ongoing discussions with the adjacent Coppermine Arena resulted in a new retaining wall being installed in the large dog side of the park including on both sides of the fence which backs up to the Coppermine soccer field. This was to keep the sand inside the park. Volunteers, organized by Tony Edmonds (aka Park Ranger Tony), showed up for a community “Dig Day” in April to prepare the park, then contractors completed the installation. Coppermine also added new netting on their side of the perimeter to keep soccer balls from flying into the park. This was an important improvement for the safety of our park-goers. 

The CCA sends a huge thank you to everyone who came out to help during the Canton Dog Park Volunteer Dig Day!! Volunteers included Jayne, Ranger Tony, Brian, Jason, Kim, Riley, Lenny, Catie, Alecia, Matt, Jan, Christine, Olive, Lizzie, Andrew, Philippe, and others! Shout out to Julie, Allie, Amanda, and Torbin for representing the Canton Community Association and helping to coordinate behind the scenes.  

In early April we were thrilled to get an on-site meeting with Baltimore City Rec and Parks Community Engagement Liaison, Earl Johnson. He met with Jayne and Amanda to learn about all the water issues at the park. 

Ongoing issues included 

  • Water leak under the main sign by the front entrance on Toone St. which drained onto the sidewalk 

  • Broken water fountains (2)

  • Broken spigots (2)

  • A large “lake” which formed on the large side of the dog park every time it rained 

We are happy to share that with the support of Councilman Zeke Cohen’s office we had a follow-up visit from the BCRP Chief of Park Maintenance Ronald Rudisill in May. He assessed the park in full and had a chat with Park Ranger Tony, too.

This meeting was followed by some instant action on the part of BCRP! 

To date, they have repaired the leak out front by the main sign, cleaned up the resulting debris on the sidewalk, and the spigots are now in working order as well. Shout out to Jimmy Hitt, the Park District Manager at Patterson Park, for his efforts!!

On May 23 the park was closed so BCRP could fill in the surface with more sand to prevent the water from pooling. We’re stoked to say there is no more lake when it rains! Many thanks to Timothy Wiley & crew from BCRP for re-grading the Friends of Canton Dog Park!! 

Next up, BCRP is also going to repair/replace the water fountains (date TBD) and the CCA is going to update the faded signs around the facility. 

To celebrate the renovation of Canton Dog Park, FCDP will host a small community event sometime this summer. We’ll have some fun and chat with pup parents about their experiences at the park as well. Community feedback is always welcomed. Stay tuned for details! 

Oh, and while the repairs have been happening, Julie has been a regular at the park to meet our neighbors and their dogs to gather content for the newly revived FCDP Facebook page. Volunteer Allie has been helping to build the committee, inventory the supplies, and hang signs on the previously unused bulletin boards. Park Ranger Tony is an ever-present force overseeing the daily upkeep and being the overall ambassador of fun for our Park. 

The CCA believes the Canton Dog Park is a great resource for our community and a fun way for neighbors to meet one another and learn more about our community, too.

Look for more updates to come in 2022 and don’t forget to follow the park on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CantonDogPark.

 To read more about the park: https://www.cantoncommunity.org/canton-dog-park. For questions/comments dogpark@cantoncommunity.org.