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Mayor Sonny Santa Ines (center), Mayor pro tem Scott Larsen, Council mem-bers Ray Dunton, Dan Koops and Ron Schnablegger. Photo by Tammye McDuff.
By Tammye McDuff
The past few years, the city of Bellflower has been at a financial standstill, however through recent acquisitions, the City is now on track to economic recovery. Brian Lee, Director of Economic Development gave HMG-CN an exclusive look at the new additions to the City. Among the first of the developments is the Flora Vista Dog Park.
City Council gathered last week for a brief construction groundbreaking ceremony held December 11, 2014 for the new Bellflower Dog Park, which will be located at behind Hollywood Sports Park facility.
The 12,000 square foot facility has three divided areas. The first of the three will be a small dog park at 3,800 square feet; secondly a large dog park measuring 11,700 square feet and a final separation run as an introduction area. The park will surround the entire facility with a six-foot vinyl-dipped chain link fence and will provide waste dispensers and bags. Picnic areas; resting benches, as well as drinking fountains for humans and their four legged best friends will be installed. A parking lot with nine parking spaces, including one ADA van accessible space is currently under construction. As a touch of canine whimsy two dog-bone shaped concrete planters and benches will be housed in the large dog facility.
Lee notes “The city is has already accepted a bid and anticipate the parks completion February 2015, without weather conflict.”
Dog friendly cities are among the fastest growing and upbeat cities in the nation, according to a report from Forbes Magazine.
Forbes listed the top ten as San Diego, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, Orlando, Austin, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Milwaukee, Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Forbes based their list on a 2013 Rent.com study. Metropolitan markets were ranked based on availability of rental inventory, number of dog parks, number of dog-friendly business establishments, cost of pet care, dog-centric events and walkability scores. Sources: Trust for Public Land, Cost of Living Index, Walkscore, Rent.com
Located at 9230 Flora Vista Street the bid was awarded to KASA Construction with an approximate cost of $250,000.00. KASA Construction is a full-service general engineering firm specializing in public works and commercial construction. Their work ranges from parks to schools, roads and highways. KASA clientele include local, State and Federal Agencies, Municipalities, School Districts, Universities, Developers, HOA’s, and private Home & Business Owners. KASA’s extensive field and administration experience has awarded projects from CALTRANS, SANBAG, Metropolitan Water District, Riverside Regional Water, and the US Army Core of Engineers.
The dog park will help the area as there is currently only one dog-friendly path with the San Gabriel River Trail, a multi-use trail.
