After eight months, Holmes Beach has all but finished the makeover of its dog park.
Mayor Judy Titsworth told The Islander Aug. 21 that fenced-off sections where new sod was laid are set to be reopened soon, the final step in a series of improvements to the park.
The park is located on the north end of city field, between 62nd Street, Flotilla Drive and 59th Street.
It is the only dedicated dog park on Anna Maria Island and features separate spaces for large and small dogs, a wash-off area, as well as multiple shade structures and benches.
After receiving public feedback about the park’s condition late last year, the city began implementing a series of improvements in January.
Public works staff began by adding a bench, planting multiple trees and laying the first stage of sod to cover the west side of the big dog and the south side of the small dog.
In March, staff replaced the roofs of two structures, former baseball dugouts, that provide shade for visitors to the park and painted both a color chosen by parkgoers.
By April, the first stage of sod was fully established and the areas were reopened. The second stage of sod was then laid to cover the north side of the small dog area and the east side of the big dog area.
The small dog area was fully reopened by August and the cordoned-off section of the big dog area reopened over the week of Aug. 17.
With the dogs back on the grass, the improvements are done.
Titsworth said she was pleased with the upgrades.
“I’m happy because I think everybody else is happy,” she said. “I don’t use the park, so I rely on the users, and from everything I’ve heard, I think they’re all pretty happy.”
Nevertheless, the city plans to seek beach concession funds from Manatee County to fund a sidewalk through the dog park, as well as plant even more trees.
Titsworth said public works director Herb Raybourn was set to meet with parkgoers to determine what species of trees should be added and where they should be planted.
Raybourn wrote in an Aug. 19 email to The Islander that additional closures would not be needed to plant the new trees.