Framingham Dog Park Effort Awarded $23K Grant

FRAMINGHAM, MA — Framingham will get a $23,426 grant to design a dog park at Farm Pond Park, a major milestone for a years-old campaign helmed by local residents.

The grant comes from the Stanton Foundation, which has provided financial support for other local dog parks, including the region's newest along Route 135 in Natick.

The total cost of the Farm Pond dog park will be about $262,000, according to Framingham parks officials. Framingham is also seeking a $225,000 Stanton Foundation grant to actually build the park, plus a $25,000 grant from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program for additional costs.

Shannon Stevens, founder of the FramBARK group, and other local residents have been trying to get a formal dog park built in Framingham for years. The Farm Pond park would be about 1-acre and located south of the skateboard park.

"This has been a goal of mine and FramBARK's since 2015, and we are beyond proud that the Stanton Foundation has provided the City with design funding and project support. We are looking forward to the next steps and ready to continue moving this worthwhile project forward," Stevens said in a news release Thursday.

The Framingham Parks and Recreation Department will now seek a designer for the park, and plans could be complete by the fall, officials said Thursday.