By Elizabeth Wulfhorst
MIDDLETOWN – Tindall Park is going to the dogs. Literally.
By July 6 the township will have bids in hand for the construction of a new dog park at the municipal park across from Middletown High School North. According to Middletown Mayor Tony Perry, the project could be completed and ready for paws of all sizes in a few months.
“I’m hoping that by the fall we’ll be able to open up this park,” he said.
The Tindall Park dog park will be situated on the site of the long-closed mini golf course that used to operate there, an area Perry called a “perfect location” for this endeavor.
“It’s a great spot because it’s probably the most centralized park in the town,” he noted.
Tindall Park currently sports tennis courts, basketball courts, a playground, trails and more. The dog park is the first step in a larger plan to refurbish the entire park, which Perry said will be completed in “pieces.”
The dog park will include plenty of space for dogs to run and play off-leash, with separate areas for large and small breeds. According to documents prepared by Mark Lescavage, P.E., of Colliers Engineering & Design Inc. (DBA Maser Consulting), construction will include drainage work, fencing, sidewalk and pathway installation, parking lot improvements with lighting, landscaping and more.
“It’ll have an area for all the owners and dogs to utilize,” Perry said, including “water fountain areas for both people and dogs. So it’ll be a really great space to kind of kick off the sprucing up of Tindall Park.”
The project is fully funded, partially through money from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres Program. As of press time the township’s website showed one bid received. According to Perry, the township committee will be awarding the contract for the project at its July meeting with the hope the work will begin shortly thereafter.
“This will be Middletown’s first true dog park,” Perry said. “We’ve seen other municipalities do it and it’s really something that’s needed for a lot of our families across Middletown, where they can take a dog and take them off the leash and do it in an area that’s safe for them and safe for others.”
Longtime Middletown resident Janet Molicki is excited about the prospect of having a dog park in town for Tatum, her 3-year-old Cavapoo, a cross between a Cavalier King Charles spaniel and a poodle. Molicki said she usually takes Tatum to the dog park at Thompson Park in Lincroft but will “love having a place closer” to home with all the proposed amenities. She likes dog parks for the socialization they can provide younger dogs.
“I love the idea of zipping there quickly and getting Tatum out moving, running, socializing,” she said. “I will absolutely go there, absolutely.”
Unlike in other towns where dog parks are dedicated in memory of an individual or beloved animal, Perry said Middletown currently has no plans to name the park anything other than the Tindall Park dog park, but he noted township officials are always “readily accessible” and open to residents’ suggestions.
“I think it’s going to be something very exciting and it’s going to be widely used once it’s ready,” Perry said.
The article originally appeared in the June 30 – July 6, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
