Readers Say 'Yes' to Dog Park in Port

The idea of adding a dog park to Port Washington sparked plenty of excitement and "yes" answers from Patch readers.

"I think a dog park in Port Washington is an absolutely wonderful idea!" Betty Fields-Mueller wrote on Patch. "I currently take my dog to Grafton and would love to be able to take her somewhere closer to home."

Mayor Tom Mlada and other officials have begun tossing around the idea of adding a dog park in the city, checking out a few possible places to have the park but looking for feedback from the community before moving forward. The idea is to have the space be a city-owned park, but run and funded mostly by volunteers interested in the cause. 

Nearby dog park options are fairly limited: many people head to Muttland Meadows in Grafton to let their dogs run free, and some people frequent a fenceless dog park in Mequon, formally known as Katherine Kearney Carpenter Park.

Patch reader MB said he goes to Grafton, and likes the operations at that park.

"Would love to see a dog park in Port," he wrote. "Muttland Meadows in Grafton is nice — not overly controlled. Proof of vaccines, screening process, etc., might be overthinking it a bit. Big dogs especially need a safe place to run off leash for awhile. Hope to see it happen. Any chance one of the locales is near the lake?"

A poll on Patch had 100 percent of the voters supporting the dog park, and others jumping into the conversation to offer location ideas.

"YES!" Robert B. wrote about supporting the dog park. "The open field next to Harbor Village. Empty parking lot to use and it's in the middle of town. It's a big empty field that costs a fortune to cut I'm sure. Toss a fence around it and let's go! Tired of people with unleashed dogs in Sauk Creek Nature Preserve!"

Do you have a location suggestion for a dog park in Port?

Tell us in the comments.