At the base of a gentle slope a crew from Pat Corsetti Inc. contractors Wednesday, November 6, prepped the ground for an agility course for dogs.

Newtown’s new Park and Bark dog park, currently under construction at the end of Old Farm Road below the Second Company Governor’s Horse Guard, will include the agility equipment with its hoops, ramps, weave poles, jumps, tunnels, and imitation logs to crawl through. Park installation and site work done in part by Parks and Recreation personnel include a concrete slab, pavilion, water features, fencing, and more.

Assistant Director of Parks Carl Samuelson stood with Dan Corsetti Wednesday, talking about agility course plans. “I am happy with the progress,” Mr Samuelson said. The course will be finished in a circular pattern, he said. Preparations for fencing were also taking place.

The total project cost is roughly $200,000. The original park budget was just $50,000 for a fence, but the project scope increased thanks to donation and beneficiary funds.

Once the park is completed, “we may hold a soft opening so people can start using it, then have a grand opening in the spring,” said Assistant Director of Recreation RoseAnn Reggiano recently.

Park features will include a splash pad, agility course, benches, water fountains, and a pet shower to rinse paws and feet, and the overhanging shade structure on the concrete. The site, which will be completely fenced in, sits on a sloping piece of land that levels off on a rise overlooking farming fields.

Ms Reggiano is planning a purchase-a-brick campaign to continue raising funds for ongoing costs, supplies, and plantings.