Pooch tails should be a wagging as heavy equipment operators have been clearing a spot for the expansion of McMinnville Dog Park. 

“The crew started working last Friday to clear the land,” said McMinnville Parks and Recreation Department director Scott McCord. “A big shout-out to maintenance supervisor Heath Collins and his crew from McMinnville Water and Sewer Department. Because they’re doing this portion of the work in-house, we can spend the entire $10,000 on fencing.”

McMinnville’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved $10,000 in the department’s 2021-22 fiscal year budget for Dog Park expansion. Those funds were designated in response to user complaints that the area provided by the city was inadequate for larger dogs to frolic.

“They’ll clear all the way to the next utility pole on the street,” said McCord, who says the size of the expansion is yet to be determined. “It will be as large as we can make it. The first section’s fence was $15,000. We’ll see what we can get for $10,000.”

Configuration of the park will remain unchanged. The park is split in two with an area for small dogs and an area for large dogs. There is a double-gated entrance to each area.

McMinnville Dog Park opened in the summer of 2020.