It's Finally Here: La Paws Dog Park to Open Saturday

The long-awaited – and much-debated – dog park is here. (Yes, we know that rhymed.)

Grand opening of La Paws Park – inside joke only for South Orange Countians! – is set for 9 a.m. to noon Saturday.

Councilman Dave Leckness got so excited, he made a selfie video, during which he acknowledges, “It wasn’t cheap.”

How not cheap? According to city spokeswoman Kelly Tokarski, construction came in at $1,09 mil. But the search for the perfect spot was some 12 years ago, so if you add in all the costs in considering the other nine potential sites, your total is $1.4 million.

So here’s what you got for the money:

• 6 acres total
• Small dog area, .5 acre
• Large dog area, 1.5 acres
• Single-owner dog area, .1 acre
• 42-car parking area 
• Walking trail
• 3 acres of slopes and open space

See what the park looked like before construction.

Saturday’s grand opening will feature a host of dog-oriented vendors, free food and a character sketch artist for dogs. Girl Scout troops will be on hand serving and giving away “bone” cookies.

La Paws Park is located along Felipe Road just south of Gilleran Park.

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