Will Rogers once said, “If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.”
For many people, including those in Sedona, their dogs are an important part of their lives. And as such, they try and take as good of care of them as possible, which includes exercise.
While the numbers of park-goers is not known, the Sedona Dog Park is a popular spot for dog owners to walk their canine friends and to have them interact with others. And soon, the park will be receiving a much-needed facelift.
On Tuesday, Aug. 8, the Sedona City Council approved awarding a contract to Valwest Construction, of Gilbert, in the amount of $228,548.50.
Since the project was budgeted this year for $180,000, the remaining amount will come from the developmental impact fee fund. The city had put the project out to bid earlier in the year but received just one bid of $334,000.
In order to reduce potential costs, staff removed parking improvements along Carruth Drive, which would have added two additional parking spaces. Last year council approved $18,120 for a master plan design to be completed by Norris Design for the dog park.
After four community outreach meetings and council input, a master plan was created that addresses all improvements that can be made over time. Work set to be done includes parking improvements with two ADA spaces, resurfacing using decomposed granite and artificial turf, concrete sidewalks, improvements to the watering station and drainage as well as six new trees.
The work approved is part of the first phase of improvements to the park. Additional phases will be made when funding is available in upcoming budgets. Work on this phase will begin next month and is expected to be completed by November.
Members of the public spoke in favor of the improvements, stating that the park has severe drainage issues following rains, especially this time of the year. Engineering Supervisor Stephen Craver said the new drainage plan should resolve these issues.
“What do we see as the long-term maintenance costs?” Councilman Jon Thompson asked. “It feels like this kind of surprised us that these problems came up. What would you anticipate as being the next major maintenance issue that would have to be dealt with?”
City Engineer Andy Dickey said he does not anticipate any major maintenance projects in the future and that the only anticipated costs would be those associated with additional phases to the park.
“This is something we owe to our community,” Councilman Scott Jablow said. “We do a lot for tourists but I also think we need to do more for the residents. This is a small park that gets used a lot.”
