Lutz opened a new dogpark thanks to the hard work of teacher, Judy Alvarez and her pupils at Lutz Elementary. They developed the idea and presented it to the Hillsborough County Board of Commissioners a couple years ago. It's my understanding that Mrs. Alvarez' classes will continue to work on the dogpark, writing grants for improvements. I imagine her pupils will be this country's next great leaders!
The park sits on the west side of Hwy 41, just south of Lutz Lake Fern Rd. in Lutz. It's a large plot of land wrapped around a small drainage pond. It's divided into too sections, one for small dogs and one for large. The picture, above, is of the large dog area on a wintry day. There are transitional entry pens, time out pens, dog and people water taps and a couple weeks ago, restrooms were added. Several benches are situated around the perimeter. The picture, right, is of a nature trail that connects to the back of the park. The park has been filled with dogs since the grand opening last fall. It's rare to go there and not find a gang of happy canines, running and tumbling with tongues lolling and tails wagging.We've met people who have visited other Hillsborough County dogparks. They compare the Lutz one favorably. A few people have said they wish there were picnic tables. We were told by parks officials that they didn't want picnic tables because they didn't want them used for eating (food is prohibited in the park). Still, it would be nice to have a table to sit around with other dog owners . Many people bring drinks, so that would give them a place to set them. I'm not sure if drinks are restricted, but I know those early morning park users would find it hard not to have that cup of coffee. Someone has started a Lutz DogPark email list (look that up on yahoo email groups, search "Friends of Lutz Dogpark"). It would be interesting to have county and statewide dogpark email groups. What dogparks have you visited and what features did you like about them? How have issues such as misbehavior and ignoring dogpark rules been dealt with in other parks? In the future, I'll do an article on safe dogpark behavior and ettiquette.
