North Hempstead reopens expanded, upgraded dog park
Dogs frolic Thursday at the newly renovated dog park at Michael J. Tully Park in North Hempstead Town. Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa Loarca
Alexa, an 18-month-old husky, was off her leash and ready to run. And then she saw it: a ball.
Tongue hanging, Alexa sprinted the length of the renovated dog park Thursday morning at Michael J. Tully Park and snatched the bright yellow tennis ball in her mouth.
The Town of North Hempstead reopened the New Hyde Park facility Thursday following the completion of a $52,114 expansion of the play area and artificial turf field. The town will spend about another $54,000 to build a shade structure at the park, officials said. The entire project is being funded through the American Rescue Plan Act.
“Thanks to some ARPA funds that we needed to use by the end of [last] year, we almost doubled the size that the dogs can run here,” Supervisor Jennifer DeSena said in an interview as dogs raced around her. “People establish friendships with the other dog [owners]. … This is a real hub of the New Hyde Park, Garden City Park community.”
The funds came from a $3.8 million reallocation of federal pandemic aid originally earmarked for the dredging of Manhasset Bay. The town needed to spend the money by the end of 2024, and with the dredging project far from complete, the money was directed toward several other projects, including the dog park.
“I’m not going to give that money back to the federal government,” DeSena said in an interview in December. “So we were able to find several contracts that we already have that we could allocate money to."
LandTek, a sports facility construction company, performed the renovation.
Kelly Gillen, the town’s parks and recreation commissioner, said the project took 10 days. Workers excavated an area of pebbles and put down the turf.
“It’s so nice to see them have this extra space to run and exercise and make friends,” Gillen said.
It's the first time the dog park had been updated since it opened in 2019, according to a news release from the town.
Gillen said construction of the shade structure should begin within the next couple of weeks. The town will replace a water fountain with faucets for both humans and dogs, using about $3,000 in department operating funds.
The town will also put turf down on baseball and softball fields in Carle Place (Charles J. Fuschillo Park and Eighth & Asbury Ballfield) and Albertson (John D. Caemmerer Park), starting in late June. Those projects should take about two months to complete, Gillen said.
Town Clerk Ragini Srivastava, Alexa the husky's owner, said in an interview the expanded dog park will be helpful for people who don't have as much space in their backyards.
"They can meet their friends and run around with them," Srivastava said. "Alexa loves coming here."
Alexa, an 18-month-old husky, was off her leash and ready to run. And then she saw it: a ball.
Tongue hanging, Alexa sprinted the length of the renovated dog park Thursday morning at Michael J. Tully Park and snatched the bright yellow tennis ball in her mouth.
The Town of North Hempstead reopened the New Hyde Park facility Thursday following the completion of a $52,114 expansion of the play area and artificial turf field. The town will spend about another $54,000 to build a shade structure at the park, officials said. The entire project is being funded through the American Rescue Plan Act.
“Thanks to some ARPA funds that we needed to use by the end of [last] year, we almost doubled the size that the dogs can run here,” Supervisor Jennifer DeSena said in an interview as dogs raced around her. “People establish friendships with the other dog [owners]. … This is a real hub of the New Hyde Park, Garden City Park community.”
The funds came from a $3.8 million reallocation of federal pandemic aid originally earmarked for the dredging of Manhasset Bay. The town needed to spend the money by the end of 2024, and with the dredging project far from complete, the money was directed toward several other projects, including the dog park.
“I’m not going to give that money back to the federal government,” DeSena said in an interview in December. “So we were able to find several contracts that we already have that we could allocate money to."
LandTek, a sports facility construction company, performed the renovation.
Kelly Gillen, the town’s parks and recreation commissioner, said the project took 10 days. Workers excavated an area of pebbles and put down the turf.
“It’s so nice to see them have this extra space to run and exercise and make friends,” Gillen said.
It's the first time the dog park had been updated since it opened in 2019, according to a news release from the town.
Dogs play at the refurbished park Thursday. It now has more room to roam for them. Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa Loarca
Gillen said construction of the shade structure should begin within the next couple of weeks. The town will replace a water fountain with faucets for both humans and dogs, using about $3,000 in department operating funds.
The town will also put turf down on baseball and softball fields in Carle Place (Charles J. Fuschillo Park and Eighth & Asbury Ballfield) and Albertson (John D. Caemmerer Park), starting in late June. Those projects should take about two months to complete, Gillen said.
Town Clerk Ragini Srivastava, Alexa the husky's owner, said in an interview the expanded dog park will be helpful for people who don't have as much space in their backyards.
"They can meet their friends and run around with them," Srivastava said. "Alexa loves coming here."
Joshua Needelman covers the Town of North Hempstead for Newsday. A Long Island native and University of Maryland graduate, his work has appeared in publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post.
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