SOUTHWICK — A nonprofit group that has been working to secure a location to build a dog park in town announced at the Select Board meeting Monday that it has a property and plans for the park, and that it will gift it to the town at no cost to the taxpayer when completed.
“[We’re] asking the Town of Southwick to accept our gift of 32-plus acres located at 67 Hudson Drive, which includes the future homes of Dillinger’s Park, Southwick’s community-minded, intergenerational dog park, which will have multiple parks to include a park for senior dogs and senior folks,” said Keith Deyo, one of five members of the Friends of Southwick Dog Park, Inc. who made the announcement.
Deyo said one of the key aspects of the proposed park is that it will be senior-citizen friendly for dog owners, which he said a lot of parks don’t have because too often senior communities don’t feel comfortable going to one.
The area just north of the proposed Sam West Road and Hudson Drive Connection, will be more than a dog park, he said.
It will provide parking for northern access to the Rail Trail.
“This park will provide some additional north area parking. It’ll be covered and lighted,” Deyo said, explaining later that the covered parking area will include solar panels installed on the roof to feed electricity into the grid.
And there will be a 22-acre area that will be called The Wilds, which will be a natural preserved forest, riverfront, wetlands, and animal habitats for community exploration and enjoyment.
The 32 acres are being gifted from the current owner, Tilcon Minerals, Inc., to the Friends of Southwick Dog Park. It includes the land needed for the Sam West/Hudson Drive connector.
“And this is a big one roadway completion,” Deyo said. “An unencumbered track of property gifted to the town of Southwick to complete the future connection of Sam West Road to Hudson Drive.”
Friends’ member Mark Kuenzel provided the key benefits of the project and what he called “financial assurances.”
It will be a gift to the town at no cost to residents, fully funded by grants, private donors, volunteers, and Mother Nature, Kuenzel said.
It will be built on natural, permeable ground surfaces with drought-tolerant plantings to minimize maintenance expenses, have an on-site well for planting and dog fountains, which will eliminate municipal water costs, he said.
“The conveyance of the property to the town of Southwick [will be] saving taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars in future legal fees, easements, and administrative costs — with zero tax impact,” Kuenzel said.
Deyo stressed the park was designed not just to serve the community, but to do so responsibly and sustainably without any financial burden to the town or its residents.
To pay for the project, Deyo said the Friends have already gotten donor commitments for certain phases of development and amenities for the park.
“We have plans to continue to conduct continuous community fundraisings throughout the design and development and construction phases to supplement grant funding,” he said, adding later that there are numerous private foundations that provide grant funding for dog parks.
Kuenzel and Deyo answered some of the questions they expected from the board members and residents.
The town is not purchasing the property, so it will have no impact on taxes.
The Friends will not apply for Community Preservation Act funding.
They stressed that the cost to build the property will be zero.
“Construction costs vary depending on scope and volunteer involvement, but the cost to the town will remain zero,” Kuenzel said.
As for the reason why the group will give it to the town when completed, “The town ownership ensures equal access, maintains municipal insurance coverage and preserves public benefit,” he said.
Deyo said traffic on Hudson Drive would not be affected.
“Dog park traffic is similar to playground traffic — light, brief and spread throughout the day,” he said.
He also addressed whether the town would lose tax revenue by accepting the property, taking it off the rolls.
Deyo said that because the Friends are a 501(c)(3) and tax-exempt, if it maintained ownership, it still wouldn’t be responsible for taxes on it.
About Tilcon Minerals donating the property, Deyo said a presentation was made to the company’s president, and she “fully endorsed the proposed use of this property.”
Kuenzel described a few of the benefits of the park and additional parking for the Rail Trail.
“Dillinger’s Park and the Rail Trail Park area will serve not only local residents, but also draw visitors, support nearby businesses, provide the open space envisioned in the area development plan and reinforce Southwick’s community identity,” Kuenzel said.
Later, Deyo went into greater detail about why the park will feature an area for senior citizens.
“In doing some research on grants, you’d be surprised how many grants are out there for dog parks that have senior parks within their parks. There’s a lot of dog parks that don’t respect the needs of senior citizens with respect to them taking their dogs to a dog park. So, if your dog park has a separate dog park for seniors, there’s a number of different organizations out there that want to help fund that park,” he said.
Deyo said the project is expected to be completed in two to three years, but that will be dependent on grant funding.
As the group’s presentation started, Deyo explained why the park will be named Dillinger’s Dog Park.
He said that a few years ago, a lifelong friend of his and his wife, Peter Stanborn, passed away.
“Peter had a deep love for dogs, especially his canine companion, Dillinger,” Deyo said.
After he died, he said, they wanted to find a meaningful way to honor Sanborn and Dillinger and began discussions with the town of West Springfield, where Sanborn lived and helped fund a dog park at Mittineague Park.
It was during that process that they realized how much they wanted to actually focus their efforts in Southwick — “the town we love so much.”
“That journey led us to meet a couple of wonderful women who shared a vision of creating a dog park for the town of Southwick. Together, that shared vision became the foundation for Friends of Southwick Dog Park Inc. and ultimately the inspiration for what we now call Dillinger’s Park,” Deyo said.