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Maria Powers leaves her dog home alone in her Coconut
Grove apartment all day while she works in a local computer store.
About all the pooch used to look forward to in the way of exercise was
a nightly walk around the block on the end of a leash when Maria came
home from work.
Dogs and their owners frolic in Coconut Grove's new dog park in a
fenced-off section of Blanche Park at Virginia Avenue and Shipping
Street
But, not any more. Thanks to the wisdom of City of
Miami planners, there's a new park at the corner of Virginia Avenue
and Shipping Street created just for dogs. It's Miami's first dog park
and there's more than an acre of open space, grass and trees where the
family mutt can romp, play and generally stretch his cooped-up
muscles.
And there's an important extra benefit the Dog
Park, as it is unofficially known, has become a meeting place for
neighbors who ordinarily might never have made contact with each
other. The park has evolved into an outdoor community center of sorts,
an informal gathering place where friendships and even occasional
romance blossoms, and not just among the four-legged denizens of the
park, either.
The Dog Park was the brainchild of City of Miami
Police Officer Audrey Eckert, a 17-year veteran of the police
department and a devout dog owner and animal lover. Officer Eckert says she
saw the need for a space like the Dog Park and set out to make it happen.
With help from the city and contributions from local businesses, the idea
quickly became a reality.
A section of Blanche Park was allocated and fenced off, a doggie water
fountain was built, sanitation provisions added and almost before you could
say, "Come here, Spot!" the Dog Park was open for business.
Additional improvements for the park are planned, including a doggie
obstacle course, possibly more benches to sit on for people who accompany
their animals and the spreading of two truckloads of woodchips.
Now, dog owners and their pets stroll to the park every day for a little
fun, exercise and relaxation. An unexpected by-product of the park is the
development of an informal neighborhood crime watch group, a product of
neighbors and their pets coming together and meeting because of a common
need.
Officer Eckert says the neighborhood watch group is already responsible for
foiling at least one home burglary. Meantime, crime seems to be on the
decline in the area, romance is in the air and friendship is on the rise.
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