Town of Penfield, New York
The Willow Grove Dog Zone located within Ellison Park is over 4 acres of enclosed naturalized areas designed for local dogs and their owners. Funding for design and permitting was raised from community donations, and construction was completed by Monroe County’s construction crew. The Willow Grove Dog Zone not only provides for the needs of dogs and their owners, but also positively impacts the rest of Ellison Park, evidenced by the decrease in complaints regarding off-leash dogs.
Ecological enhancements to benefit the park environment include creating an open water habitat, developing emergent marsh areas, enhancing microclimates, restoring land with native seed mixes, and planting 600 bare-root native shrubs. Approximately 4,800 square feet of existing parking area pavement was removed and replaced with pervious surfaces, and pathways were constructed using recycled asphalt millings from County road projects.