Construction on Guelph’s 2nd fenced-in dog park to begin this month

The City of Guelph says construction on a new fenced-in, leash-free dog park at the Bristol Street Park will begin later this month.

The shovels are expected to hit the ground on June 29, and the work is expected to take three weeks, the city said in a news release.

When it will open to residents is unclear due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

It’ll be the second fenced-in dog park in Guelph after one was built at Peter Misersky Park and later prompted several complaints from nearby residents.

The city said the work on Bristol Street will include measures to address concerns from residents, “including proximity of the park to homes, noise, security and hours of operations and sightlines to balance the needs of residents without compromising the function of the space for leash-free users.”

Construction will include building the fence with soft-close latches to reduce noise, installing security cameras, adding updated rule signs and a specialized dog waste container and planting trees.

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As for the fenced-in area at Peter Misersky Park, the city said some adjustments to that space will continue there following construction at Bristol Street Park.

After Guelph’s first fenced-in dog park opened in 2019, city hall was lit up with complaints about noise, waste, traffic and dogs off-leash outside of the fenced-in area. The city said this work will address and mitigate those concerns.

More information on the city’s effort to build fenced-in dog parks can be found on its website.