In January, the City of Covington began construction work on a new dog park at Sgt. Jason Bishop Memorial Park.
Now, when dog owners walk by, they see a fully fenced in area for their pets to play in, along with benches, waste stations, trees, a perimeter trail and straw-covered growing grass. The park features two separately fenced areas to separate large and small dogs.
Covington Parks & Recreation Manager Ben Oldiges told LINK nky that the dog park is 95% completed. Oldiges said there is still more signage to install around the park.
“Kudos to the Public Works crew,” Oldiges said. “They put in a lot of time and effort to make sure this project went smoothly. They fit it into their schedules and all worked efficiently. Overall, the project itself was fun to work on.”
The opening of the dog park was delayed twice. The park was initially scheduled to open in the spring, according to a city press release. It was then pushed back for this fall but ultimately didn’t open.
Once the fencing was completed, Oldiges said the city was disappointed with the progress of grass growth. The city plans to use the Public Works Department to hydroseed the space to help the grass grow more quickly.
“We’re looking to open the dog park sometime in the spring of next year,” Oldiges said. “That will give the grass a chance to grow after the hydroseeding. Once that process finishes, it’ll give us a chance to properly unveil the park to the public.”
The 1.5-acre dog park is located at the intersection of Ninth and Philadelphia streets. The park’s namesake is Army Sgt. 1st Class Jason Bishop, who was a 2003 graduate of Holmes High School. Bishop was killed by a bomb serving in Iraq with the 101st Airborne.
Before construction began, the playground located on the site was sparsely used, Oldiges said.
In 2021, the city conducted a survey on potential locations to build a dog park. The current site was actually the second most popular location according to the survey.
The most popular site, a field bordering Interstate 75, was ruled out due to potential health concerns. The area was previously used for stormwater retention and had been covered with partially treated sewage several times a year during large storms.
The park was designed by Cincinnati-based firm Brandstetter Carroll Inc. Funding for the park came from federal sources and a $10,000 donation by the Northern Kentucky Association of Realtors.
