QUEENS — Kew Gardens dog owners and their pups finally have a space to play.
A new 9,000-square-foot dog run opened Monday in Forest Park, near the Overlook, a Queens Parks Department administrative building, according to dog owners and Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz’s office.
The dog run, enclosed by a fence with one gated entry, is very basic and has no special features. But since Central Queens has very few dog runs, getting an area for dogs to go off-leash was enough to make dog owners happy.
“BESTEST NEWS EVER doggie parents!!!!,” Andi Jompole, a local dog owner posted Monday on a neighborhood Facebook page. “It's HUGE and on grass ground, not wood chips or pebbles."
The Parks Department said that currently it has no funding for any upgrades at the Kew Gardens dog run. But the agency said it has spoken to local dog owners and encouraged them to organize.
“All NYC Parks dog runs are operated in partnership with local community groups that assist in the maintenance and management of the runs,” Meghan Lalor, a spokeswoman for the Parks Department, said in an email Tuesday. “The new dog run in Forest Park was set up as a temporary run until a more formalized dog owner group is established.”
Local dog owners, who recently formed a group called The Forest Park Barking Lot, said they have been pushing for a dog run in the neighborhood for the past six years.
"We are very, very excited because this has finally happened," said Lisa Pollione, 58, a group member, adding that there are more than 200 dog owners in Kew Gardens.
The group said they are planning to start collecting a $25 annual membership fee to cover various maintenance costs. In the future, they hope to have a number of new features installed at the dog run, including benches, bag dispensers and dog ramps.
"We want to make it the best environment for the dogs and for everyone else in the park," said Phil Ruvelas, 46, also a group member.
The closest dog run, they said, is at Park Lane South and 85th Street, in the Richmond Hill portion of Forest Park, roughly two miles away from the Overlook.
Photo credit: Andi Jompole/Facebook
