A proposal

earlier this year to build a park exclusively for dogs in Peachtree City

was panned as a waste of money by critics, became the subject of countless

jokes and gave fodder to feline lovers in the eternal debate: Dogs or

cats?

"What

a difference a couple of months make, huh?" said Michael Williams

of the city's Recreation Commission as he gave an update on the dog park

plans Monday.

"Now the

dog park people are the darlings of the city," he told fellow recreation

commissioners.

Indeed, the

Dog Park Committee won first place in the city's Fourth of July parade

earlier this month, and was treated to an awards presentation in city

council chambers that included about a half-dozen of Peachtree City's

best-groomed canine residents.

The new-found

popularity has helped the committee raise $7,000 in T-shirts alone, Williams

reported. That's about half of the $14,000 the committee said it would

need to open the first phase of the park.

In fact, the

dog park has already taken a journey of sorts, traveling about seven miles

down Ga. Highway 74 to a newly recommended location at the South 74 Soccer-Softball

complex.

Leisure Services

Director Randy Gaddo explained that the new site, on 22 undeveloped acres

on the northern end of the South 74 complex, was better suited environmentally

to the dog park.

The South 74

location was the first alternate site for the park organizers, who at

first wanted the dog play space located at Kedron Fieldhouse and Aquatic

Center.

Gaddo said

an environmental survey of the sites concluded that the South 74 location

was better from an ecological standpoint, and so it was made first choice.

"Plus,

it's just better suited, period. It's more natural, it's heavily wooded."

The 22 acres

were purchased by the city after the development of the present fields,

intended for future use as need arises, but Gaddo said that's not even

on the five-year master plan.

"There

will be an agreement that (the dog park) can stay until growth requires

more fields," he said. "But there's nothing in the five-year

plan to indicate that kind of growth."

The best solution

at this point, Gaddo said, is that the dog park not be surrounded by a

bunch of athletic facilities it has the potential to contaminate. This

location takes care of that. And when it comes time to move, "It's

not that difficult to move a dog park," Gaddo said.

"I think

the best interest of the committee is to put it in the best location it

can find for now, and if we have to move it later, we move it."

In another

matter, the Recreation Commission agreed to communicate to the dog park

committee members that the project, as defined by the city, now comes

under the auspices of the commission exclusively. That means all requests

for funding, site plans, construction permits and the like must start

with the recreation commission

"Anything

they want approved, it has to come to the recreation commission first,

and then if we approve of the plans, we will make the recommendation and

presentation to the City Council," said Gaddo.

In March, the

City Council voted to spend $5,000 in "seed money" to help the

organization start the dog park.

The park will

feature a special fountain with two separate faucets, one up high for

humans and one down low for the dogs.

Proponents

of the park argued that many residents would use the park to allow their

dogs to get exercise and socialize with other dogs. Another plus would

be giving the dogs a place to walk other than the city's cart path system,

where some have complained of encounters with dogs, council was told.

There has been

no date set for construction or completion.