New dog park in Ottawa is open for business

If the many dignitaries on hand Thursday morning for the christening of the new dog park in Ottawa had tails like the canines they were benefiting, every one of those tails would have been wagging.

Though it is not yet completely finished, “Bill’s Barking Lot,” a new off-leash dog park located at the intersection of East Lafayette and Guion streets just four blocks from Washington Square, was officially opened and ready for limited use with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday morning.

The well-attended event, which drew several government officials, many Chamber representatives and more than a dozen dogs of every size and shape along with their owners, included its naming in honor of one of the city’s greatest benefactors and dog lovers, Bill Walsh Sr.

“When my father was in hospice at OSF (St. Elizabeth Hospital),” Bill Walsh Jr. told the crowd, “my wife snuck in a chihuahua in her purse and it certainly cheered him up. It broke the rules, but it made him happy and that’s what counts.

“We thank you for dedicating this dog park on behalf of Bill Sr., who filled the world with some very strange and oddly-named pets in his lifetime. He had a genuine love for animals and a genuine love for the city, its people and certainly for the colorful cast of characters that make up the heart and soul of Ottawa.”

The park, which is not yet fully enclosed by fencing, is the idea of Commissioner Marla Pearson and a product of cooperation of the city and the Chamber. It is an extension of the Chamber’s fall Barktoberfest, which debuted last fall and will return from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 6, featuring several dog-related events held downtown on the Jordan block.

Funds from last year’s and the upcoming Barktoberfest will go toward purchasing amenities for the new park.

“I have been wanting to put in a dog park since Day 1, but more parks started happening and with the improvements to them all, it got put on the back burner,” Pearson said. “Linda Johnson called me one day and said that because Bill Sr. did so much for the community, we needed to do something to honor him, and did I have any thoughts on that.

“Linda and this group brought in Barktoberfest and fast-forwarded it into my dream of a dog park … The name is not a memorial, it’s a tribute. We already have a Walsh Park, so Bill’s Barking Lot is amazing. I just love it.”

The venue is just the second such off-leash park in Ottawa, the other being the River Run Dog Park just off Canal Road along the Illinois River near Heritage Harbor.