The Sylvania area’s furry residents will have a new place to run and play in mid-2025 when a new dog park opens its gates to the public.
The dog park, tentatively named Blueberry Fields, is set to open in the spring and will be at a property owned by Mercy Health at King Road and Central Avenue. Brian Wholehan, the park’s founder, said his goal is to make it a “state-of-the-art” facility.
“One of the things I’ve noticed is that every big and great city I’ve been to and lived in has had a really cool dog park,” Mr. Wholehan said. “It was something that Sylvania was missing.”
The park will have three sections: one for small dogs, one for large dogs, and another that will rotate in and out of use to allow the grass to regenerate. The park is in the early planning stages, but Mr. Wholehan said it will have agility equipment for dogs to play on, benches, a walking path, and water fountains.
A membership will be required to use the park, which Mr. Wholehan said will ensure that veterinarian records are on file and vaccinations are up to date. He hopes to work with other dog parks in the area, including the Glass City Dog Park and Jake and Cooper’s Bark Park, to make the membership reciprocal for an additional fee.
Larry Schaffer, founder of Jake and Cooper’s Bark Park in Oregon, has advised Mr. Wholehan throughout the process. Jake and Cooper’s was created in honor of his son, Jacob, who died after struggling with mental health and addiction, and opened in May, 2023. Mr. Schaffer said it has already created a tight-knit community of dog lovers.
“Animals are an important part of people’s lives,” Mr. Schaffer said. “What makes a community great is parks, schools, and medical offices or hospitals. And I would throw a dog park in there.”
Mr. Wholehan said he enjoys dog parks because they allow owners to form relationships while their dogs play together.
“It creates a sense of community. You instantly make friends because your dogs are playing together; it’s like kids,” Mr. Wholehan said. “For me, I don’t have kids. I have my dogs.”
The park’s creation has received early support by Mercy Health, who owns the land where the park will be located. Matt Sapara, vice president of business development and advocacy at Mercy Health, said he was excited to partner with another dog park after seeing how Jake and Cooper’s Bark Park has been used.
“They actually have a lot of clinical services that are available in that park. They have therapeutic sessions with people and their pets, and they do those things on a very regular basis,” Mr. Sapara said.
The agreement, which has not yet been formalized, will allow the dog park to use the land and develop the dog park while Mercy Health retains ownership of the property for other uses in the future, Mr. Sapara said. Mr. Wholehan said he hopes to have sponsorship tiers and donation incentives that will help fund the park’s construction and maintenance. He encourages people to get involved and volunteer through the Sylvania Dog Park Facebook group.
First Published February 6, 2025, 6:17 p.m.
