As the chairperson for the Parks & Recreation committee and the citizens group that planned the dog park, I would like to tell you about this group made of multi-generation citizens including some founding members of the City of Wheat Ridge and neighbors from the fruitedale park area.

We have been meeting for almost a year. We opted to use land already owned by the city with an existing infrastructure including a parking lot, pathways, washrooms etc. We broke down our budget needs to the basic minimums exploring all available resources, new and used.

We held public and neighborhood meetings, advertised in local newspapers, Channel 8 as well as the city’s website. Avoiding a “final” map, we created a soft layout that would allow us to make changes once the physical outline was created. We were sensitive to local’s needs, resulting in the relocation of the entire fencing line because of a single request made by one of the neighbors.

City councilors responded positively to our recommendations. It echoed our citizens request for a dog park. We were one of only two cities left without one.  As a realtor for Nostalgic Homes, it is one of the more popular requests from today’s buyers.

I wish Mr. Birney would have attended our meetings to share his opinions. To call this park an  “inside job” is an insult to the committee members that worked tirelessly on this project. The Parks and Recreation committee is certainly open to hearing requests from all citizens regarding suggestions for our parks— even one for cats.

Change is difficult Mr. Birney but, I want to assure you that the one thing that has not changed, is the level of enthusiasm and determination to keep Wheat Ridge relevant and moving forward. 

If I can be so bold as to tell you that our founding generation, the one you quote and identify with, is still kicking down doors and breaking barriers. This is the connection between that generation and the new ones moving in and raising their families all around us. I invite you to take part in our growth, in our change and in our success.

By the way, thank you for your suggestion for the park name (DiTullio’s Dog Park). He loved it, though he also realizes that this was a group effort for the good of the city, hence the name Wheat Ridge Dog Park.

Guy Nahmiach