East Valley city to throw a bone to pet owners with new dog park

PHOENIX — A new area for dogs to bark at the park is coming to Kiwanis Park next spring.

The Tempe park is beginning construction of a new dog park that will provide four dog park pods, a hydrant water feature and shaded areas for the pets.

The new area will be located in the northern section of the park near Baseline Road and Ash Avenue.

To celebrate the groundbreaking of the park, the city is holding a ceremony on Sept. 20 at 5:30 p.m.

After the completion of the dog park, the north side of Kiwanis will see more upgrades made in summer 2025, such as a new playground, concessions, restrooms and an interactive piece of artwork for the playground.

The new additions to the park come as part of Tempe’s Kiwanis North Park Improvements initiative, which is funded out of the city’s Capital Improvement Program budget. The city put forth $60 million from the budget to reinvest into its parks over the next five years.

What will be included in Kiwanis Park?

The city listed 10 features that will be included in the dog park.

• Four distinct dog park pods with separate entrances, including one for small dogs and a pod for dog agility equipment
• Hydrant water spray feature for dogs
• Decorative steel fence, trees and new landscape buffer along Baseline Road
• Two shade structures
• Connections to the Western Canal path
• New shade trees throughout
• Accessible parking spaces added along Ash Avenue
• Accessible walking path access
• New irrigation
• Benches and other site furnishings

Construction begins this week but is not expected to impact or close the nearby sections of the park. Parking and traffic lanes off of Ash Avenue could be affected for short periods of time.