Stony Creek Metropark opens first off-leash dog area

ROCHESTER/SHELBY TOWNSHIP — Local dogs have a new place to run free, play and meet some new four-legged friends.

Stony Creek Metropark recently opened an off-leash dog area, the first of its kind in the Huron-Clinton Metroparks system.

“We have lots of areas that are pet friendly in the metroparks, but they all require your pet to be on a 6-foot leash, so this is the very first off-leash area that the metroparks (have) installed,” said Danielle Mauter, chief of marketing and communications for the Huron-Clinton Metroparks.

The project, according to Metroparks Director Amy McMillan, was developed in response to public input.

“Feedback and input from the public is key to making the metroparks even more awesome than they already are. Visitors were frequently telling us that they wanted an area to run their dogs off-leash, and staff would often encounter the leash rule frequently broken. Now we have a space specifically set aside for that purpose, and we intend to add more of these spaces throughout other metroparks over time,” she said in a prepared statement.

Park officials said the majority of Stony Creek Metropark is a dog-friendly environment, as long as the dogs are on a 6-foot leash. Dogs are not allowed in the nature center area, which is the area north of 28 Mile Road, or the park’s two beaches, due to health department regulations.

The new off-leash dog area is located at the Oakgrove picnic area, which features a number of mature trees for shade.

The space has two separate fenced-in areas — one for small dogs and one for all dogs, nearly 3 acres each. The project also includes a 10-foot-wide asphalt path from the parking lot to the concrete “bullpen” entryway area, which features a water bottle-filling and pet bowl-filling station, along with other amenities.

The dog park was designed to be accessible to all — it includes a handicapped-accessible unisex portable toilet, an accessible aggregate surface in each high-traffic area and on paths extending into the off-leash areas, and parking lot striping and signs for three accessible parking spaces.

The Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund awarded the metroparks $50,000 in grant funding to support the project, and the Huron-Clinton Metroparks added an additional $144,563 in matching funds from its capital fund, bringing the overall project cost to just under $200,000.

“We’re hoping that visitors will get a lot of enjoyment out of it,” said Mauter.

Stony Creek Metropark is one of 13 metroparks. It is a 4,435-acre park that straddles the border of Macomb and Oakland counties, north of Rochester, and covers four communities: Shelby Township, Rochester, Oakland Township and Washington Township. It connects to the Macomb Orchard Trail and lies just east of the Iron Belle Trail.

“We’re also looking at creating some off-leash dog areas in other metroparks, as well,” Mauter added. “Where exactly, we can’t say for certain yet.”

For more information, visit www.metroparks.com.