The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

Photograph by Robert Scheer

Ida the Dalmatian keeps her eye on the ball at Las Palmas Dog Park.

Pooch Park

Las Palmas Dog Park reopens for business

By Susan M. Mueller

Neither leash nor muzzle nor traffic stays the race to fetch at Sunnyvale Dog Park.

The popular spot for dogs and their people at Las Palmas Park reopened in June after a $15,000 renovation.

"It used to be such a dust bowl that I would go to Mitchell Park in Palo Alto. But now this park deserves a four-paw rating in the Bay Area book Dog Companion's Guide," said Karen Serrett, Sunnyvale resident and dog owner.

New landscaping at the park is the most noticeable improvement.

"We have these 18 beautiful redwoods in and adjacent to the dog park now," said Matt Asche, the senior park leader. "We added over 20 trees along the periphery of the interior of the fence. We chose crepe myrtles and flowering plums. Both trees are hearty and have lovely blossoms."

More landscaping took place outside. Work began in March and was completed last month.

Around the edge of the enclosed park the city planted grass and put in a sprinkler system to maintain it.

The first gate at the park lets visitors and their dogs into a fenced playpen area. After the first gate is shut, a second gate opens, ensuring no escapees.

"Whenever a new dog arrives, all the other dogs rush over as a greeting committee," Serrett said. "Sometimes you can hardly get in for the size of the gang."

There had been a mud hole just at the gate. The city commissioned an artist to imbed a narrow rod of brass in the shape of a dog's face in a cement pad to alleviate the problem.

"The cyclone fence has green plastic slats interwoven to add a little privacy and safety between the dogs and perhaps distracting roller bladers or tiny fingers," Serrett said. "See the bright red fireplug we installed? It is an actual and recycled but inoperative plug."

Formerly the park had only one trash can, one baggie-supply unit and one set of clean-up scoopers. Now there are lidded trash cans and baggie supplies all along the fence.

The area without grass has decomposed granite added. It looks like tiny gravel flakes and keeps the dust down. Also new is a large bulletin board and a Fido/Fifi stand with two head holes and dog-body pictures so the dogs can have their picture taken as their humans would at a county fair.

There are about 4,400 current dog licenses in Sunnyvale, according to the Animal Control Department. But users come from all over to visit. Inge Cornett drove a school bus for Sunnyvale for 19 years. Now she comes to the dog park from Santa Clara with some of her 488 collective pounds of dog. She has two Rottweilers, one named Wild Thing, the other Cujo, after an insane dog in a Stephen King thriller. Together they weigh in at 318 pounds. At home 173 pounds are shared between a Great Dane mix and a boxer mix. She said this park is far superior to the dog park in Santa Clara.

On a recent visit, Waldo Winterburn's mixed breed, Figaro--or Figgie to his friends--was missing a pooch named Luke, another park regular.

"The dogs like the fire hydrant, and I like all the convenient trash cans. A lot of people come here. I have seen as many as 30 dogs running around, playing and barking," Winterburn said.

Sarah Kenison, from Mountain View, and her twin sister, Chrissy Kenison from Los Altos, bring a Rottweiler named Doug and a yellow lab named Boss to the park every day.

Chrissy said, "I like this new park because it is half sandy and half grass now. It is so social here with the two extra redwood benches. We all sit and talk while the dogs play. It is better than Mitchell Park. The people there don't want their dogs to play with your dogs, and they don't want their dogs to get dirty."

The Las Palmas Dog Park is open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day. The park is located at 850 Russet Drive, in Sunnyvale.

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This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, July 2, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.