In October of 2014 Cause 4Paws Gary began their quest to create an off-leash community dog park in the City of Gary. It is a much needed amenity for dog enthusiast to exercise and socialize in the community. We have searched every community in the City to find a suitable location. It was important to us, to find a location that was centrally located so the everyone in the community could enjoy it.
We wanted a location that was large enough for the giant breed dogs, like Mastiffs, Great Danes,St. Benards had enough room to exercies their big muscles and enjoy outdoor time off the end of a leash. It was equally important to us to incorporate a space for dogs who may only be friendly with the dogs in their pack or household, as well as for dogs who have not learned to be social with other dogs, as well as working dogs.
There is ALOT of land to search in the City! We searched defunct schools, parks, and lots everywhere. We ruled out properties that had completely gone back to nature as it is EXTREMELY costly to remove trees, and we did not want to desturb the existing ecosystem. We searched the beach and every other location that we could find. The defunct tennis courts South Gleason quickly became a favorite site as it met the criteria. It was centrally located between Broadway and Grant Street. It was close enough where travelers with dogs could also utlilize the park and enjoy the hidden beauty of our City. Unfortunately, that location was thrown out due to a pending project. So we continued to search. All of the school properties were a definite no, due the financial woes of the Gary School Corporation. Many of the defunct parks were either extremely overgrown, too far off the beaten path, or they were experiencing flooding issues.
At the Mayor's suggestion, we re-visited Jackson Park on the corner of 4th and Jackson. There have been some changes that have happened in that community that were not in place four years ago. We took a look with new eyes and WOW! It would work perfectly for everything that we envisioned for our project! Cause 4Paws Gary,Inc. has known from the inception of this plan that the City of Gary is in no postition to fund, develop or maintain this dog park. Our ONLY request then and now has been for the land. We are patiently awaiting the Land Lease Agreement to finally at long last breathe life into our vision for the improvement of the quality of life for the pets of the City of Gary.
We ask for your continued support of the Jackson Memorial Pet Park! The first of it's kind in Gary, Indiana......Can U Feel It?
