PORTSMOUTH — Although the debt on the Portsmouth Dog Park has finally been paid off, members of the committee that spearheaded the off-leash play area for four-legged friends still have plans for its future.

“Six years ago, this was just a dream. Now it’s a reality,” Jane Regan, chairwoman of the all-volunteer Dog Park Committee, told the Town Council Monday night. 

Ms. Regan, of Middletown, said the park, located within town-owned Melville Park, was built at a total cost of $120,000. The committee raised a little over $70,000 in grant money, plus about $45,000 more from individual and corporate donors.

“With the debt paid, we’re looking forward,” said Ms. Regan. 

The committee requested permission from the council to apply for grants — “We’re not asking you for funds,” Ms. Regan pointed out — for two upcoming projects. 

“At the top of our list is to get new trees to replace those that came down during the storms,” she said. 

The committee also wants to submit a grant to pursue solar lighting at the park, which would be on timers and shut off by 8 p.m., she said.

The committee also wants to clear more land, expand parking and create an agility exercise area.

Before the council voted unanimously to support the grant applications, council member Keith Hamilton suggested the town move its annual Arbor Day celebration to the dog park, where a new tree could be planted.

Thanks supporters

Founded by Bunny Miller and a team of volunteers, the handicapped accessible dog park project involved clearing — with the help of a herd of goats — and seeding two acres of open space; installing benches, a gazebo and a dog-friendly water fountain; and building parking spaces and post-and-rail fences for separate small and large dog areas.

“All of this was made possible thanks to the outpouring of support from the community and the Town of Portsmouth, as well as the generous contributions of the van Beuren Foundation, the Merritt Neighborhood Fund of the Aquidneck Land Trust and the Rhode Island Foundation,” said Ms. Regan.

“We never could have anticipated the enormous popularity of the dog park,”  Town Administrator Richard Rainer stated in a press release sent out by the Dog Park Committee. “It is a valued community asset.”

Added Town President Kevin Aguiar, who takes his own dogs Murphy and Maui to the park, “What makes this particular dog park so successful are the dedicated volunteers and dog owners who help keep the park safe and clean for their furry friends. They foster a warm and welcoming atmosphere, but they also care about adhering to proper dog park etiquette.” 

Other towns have approached Ms. Miller and Ms. Regan for advice on how to establish a dog park in their communities.

The Portsmouth Dog Park is a “unique place,” said Ms. Regan, “where strangers become friends. Watching our dogs romp together, we find common ground with folks we’d never meet otherwise.”

For more information visit portsmouthdogparkri.com.