JC DogPAC News

for November 23, 2007 - Emma's Run Reservation

Emma's Run is reserved for a dog meeting on Friday, November 23, 3-4pm. Please do not plan to use Emma's Run during that time unless you and your dog are part of that event.

November 2007 - Water Tank Not Being Filled; Pond Open

Because it is below freezing sometimes, DogPAC will not fill the water tank at the park entrance until spring. And Lily's Pond is open with the following sign: "Caution: This pond may contain bacteria that can make a dog sick.  Please consider this before allowing your dog in the water."

September 4, 2007 - Lily's Pond Closed

Pond update 9/12/07 - The tested pond water showed high levels of e. coli. Parks & Rec. staff will discuss those results and solutions with ISU staff. The results will be reported here.

City staff are investigating whether the pond is safe for dogs. There have been complaints and claims that dogs have gotten sick after being in Lily's Pond. Until they know something for certain, the city has closed Lily's Pond.

September 30, 2007 - Disc Golf Tournament 2-5pm

There will be a disc golf tournament from 2-5pm on Sunday, September 30. Expect more cars in the parking lot. The tournament will also use busses to shuttle people to the playing field, so there will also be busses in the parking lot from time to time that day.

weekend of 8-9 September - Disc Golf Tournament

Why is the disc gold tournament listed here? Because TOP shares the parking lot with the disc golf course. There will be a disc golf championship on Saturday and Sunday, 8 & 9 September 2007, between 7am and 7pm. Expect many more cars in the parking lot that weekend and plan your trips to the dog park accordingly.

on August 19, 2007, Sunday - Pug Meet Up in Emma's Run

Emma's Run is scheduled for a Pug Meet Up from 10am -noon on Sunday, August 19. Please do not plan to use Emma's Run during that time unless you and your dog are part of that event.

beginning July 30, 2007 - Construction for Poop Tank in Lucky Pawz Playground

Construction for the second waste tank in the Lucky Pawz Playground (LPP) started 7/30/07. For the rest of this week (until Friday, August 3) the far section of the LPP, including Lily's Pond, will be closed. The near part of LPP will be closed daily until 3:30pm, when the construction crew leaves. If you come to the park before 3:30pm, use the small dog area if you have a small dog or Emma's Run for all other dogs. The city expects the entire LPP to be opened on Saturday, 4 August.

Once the tank is installed, you'll be able to walk to the disposal pipe in the Lucky Pawz Playground and deposit green poop bags. The pipes outside the entrance to TOP will continue to be functional. Please use only the green poop bags, which decompose in the waste tanks.

July 29, 2007, Sunday - Shiba Inu Party in Emma's Run

Emma's Run is scheduled for a Shiba Inu party from 3-4:30pm on Sunday, July 29. If you have a Shiba Inu and a TOP tag (or a day pass), come to the party. Please do not plan to use Emma's Run during that time unless you and your dog are part of that event.

It must have been a great success. Look at these happy people and dogs.

July 20, 2007 - Park Closed for Cement Pouring

The concrete pads for the shelters will be poured on Friday, July 20, 2007, starting at 7:30am. TOP will be closed while this work is being done. Once the pads have been poured and the concrete sets, the planned shelters will be built. There will be two shelters in the Lucky Pawz Playground, and one each in Emma's Run and the small dog yard.

June 17, 2007 - Celebrating Our 1 Year Anniversary

JC DogPAC will celebrate that the Thornberry Off-Leash Dog Park will have been open for a year on Sunday, 17 June. Beginning at 9:30am we will have a brief ceremony to open and name the pond as Lily's Pond. A frequent visitor to the park, Lily was a Dalmatian companion of Beth Shields, former JC DogPAC president. Beth's energy and enthusiasm contributed greatly to getting TOP open.

Here are some photos from the event opening the pond. Top left is Terry Trueblood, Parks & Rec., and Beth Shields with her current Dalmatians (Rose and George).

 

June 2007 - Another City Opens a Dog Park

Washington, Iowa, will open its first off-leash dog park on Sunday, June 24, 2-4pm, at the west end of Sunset Park. See the poster/invitation for details. Bravo. The Washington group spent less than a year working and planning this park.

April 4/2/07 - Park Re-opened

On Monday, April 2, 2007, the Thornberry Off-Leash Dog Park re-opened. While the park has been closed, the City of Iowa City aerated and reseeded. They also installed temporary fence in the Lucky Pawz Playground to give part of the yard a chance to recover. For a while, only the back (west) part of that area is open.

JC DogPAC has installed many new memorial bricks. Look for them as you cross the entry way. You can order a brick at any time by filing out this form and sending it and your donation to JC DogPAC. Several of us also spent a couple hours cleaning up trash and dog poop in each of the 3 yards. We hope everyone will work to keep going from this clean start.

There are 2 gates, rather than 1, to Lucky Pawz Playground. The gates on the north are the entrance to the yard and the gates on the south are the exit. Signs marking "Entry Only" and "Exit Only" are on the way. We expect that with only one-way traffic using each gate that dogs and people will move into and out of that yard more comfortably.

March 29, 2007 - Park Re-opening 4/2/07

On Monday, April 2, 2007, the Thornberry Off-Leash Dog Park will re-open, weather permitting. While the park has been closed, the City of Iowa City aerated and reseeded.

The Parks and Recreation Division of the City of Iowa City issued this press release on March 13, 2007:

"Due to wet and muddy conditions the Thornberry Off-Leash Dog Park is closed for an indefinite period of time, effective Wednesday, March 14.  A substantial amount of the grass has been lost as a result of heavy activity on the wet grounds, so closing it is necessary in order to prevent further loss.  Another news release will be issued when the park is re-opened."

February 7, 2007 - Help Keep the Park Clean(er)

Even though it is cold, there are lots of dogs at the park. That's great.

But, DogPAC has gotten several comments and complaints recently about the amount of dog poop that has not been picked up and disposed of. DogPAC assured the City of Iowa City that the group would help keep the amount of dog poop at the park at a minimum. We request that everyone help in this effort by picking up your own dog's (or dogs's) leavings. Of course picking up one or two unclaimed deposits will help as well.

DogPAC would like to organize poop patrols. If you are willing to spend a bit of time at the park picking up poop with others, please send email. In your message, suggest a time of day and day of week you'd like to work. We'll organize accordingly.

January 25, 2007 - Engraved Brick Delay

There has been an unusual delay in our latest engraved brick order due to factors beyond our control. The brick engraving company that DogPAC works with has assured us that they’ve taken multiple steps in their manufacturing process to correct the problem, and will return future orders in 8-10 weeks. 

We promise you that we are monitoring the situation; the order of Fall 2006 bricks should arrive within the next several weeks or so. At that time it will be DogPAC’s responsibility to place the new bricks in the walkway. We will have to pull existing bricks and replace them with engraved bricks; that process may depend on the weather.

We greatly appreciate your patience during this time. Your support of Thornberry Park, through purchase of the bricks, with their unique and personal engravings, are a mainstay of the funding that contributes to the park’s continued success.

January 20, 2007 - Pedestrian Bridge?

The Iowa City City Council will soon consider the annual budget which includes funding for a pedestrian/bike bridge to connect Rocky Shore with the Peninsula neighborhood. JC DogPAC supports the building of this bridge. Read this board member's letter of support. And if you, too, support the construction of this bridge, please contact the Council at council@iowa-city.org.

December 2006 elections

JC DogPAC elected new members at the December 2006 meeting. New members are Jodeane Cancilla and Kelly Neppl. Returning members are Jean Walker, Barb Meredith, Jim Kelly, Diana Harris, and Anne Burnside. Kelly is now the secretary, Anne continues as treasurer with help from assistant treasurer Jean. Jim remains vice-president, and Diana was elected president.

DogPAC thanks Beth Shields for her time and efforts on the board. Beth says she's just stepping off the board, but will be around to support JC DogPAC efforts to finish and improve TOP and beyond.