New Ponderay park has gone to the dogs

PONDERAY — This place has officially gone to the dogs.

The Ponderay Dog Park is open for business and Caitlin Bayles was the first to try out the ADA accessibility of the area’s first off-leash dog park last week, along with her elderly dog Diesel.

“She was really excited to be the first wheelchair to come out and use the dog park,” said Caitlin’s father, James Bayles, on Thursday as he watched his daughter navigate her chair along the path when her visit was complete.

While Diesel sniffed around and said hello to a couple of dogs in the adjacent small-dog yard, he was hard-pressed to leave his human’s side. Caitlin, 30, was born with cerebral palsy. She and her parents, James and Marie Bayles, took over MakerPoint Studios about a year and a half ago and recently designed the plaques for the dog park.

“What’s pretty cool about it is they have really devoted their lives to dealing with disabled people,” said Steve Nybank, project manager for the Ponderay Dog Park, who has gotten to know the family well throughout the project.

“They were both professionals in different industries and they said this is more important, which really gets to my heart.”

James Bayles was in the United States Army and then a psychologist for the Department of Veterans Affairs for 12 years. He later became an attorney and Marie Bayles was a forensic scientist. Through MakerPoint, the couple offers therapeutic programs for people with post traumatic stress disorder and other disabilities. James Bayles said he still helps veterans with their claims as well.

“I see a lot of services that we can do for veterans and other people with disabilities that just aren’t available that people don’t think about or can’t get the funding for,” James Bayles said.

The family moved to the area about five years ago from Houston, Texas, and found a niche at MakerPoint. It has helped Caitlin become more social, James Bayles said, and she likes to tell people she is the owner of MakerPoint, though her father said nobody really owns it since it is a nonprofit. They initially got involved with MakerPoint when it was still a for-profit business and, with her mom’s help, Caitlin began to develop designs on the computer.

“And that’s what she does — that’s her job now,” James Bayles said. “... She just enjoys making things and selling them.”

Caitlin also participates in the Special Olympics and took first place in June for both the 30- and 100-meter wheelchair races.

Diesel is Caitlin’s retired service dog, so the family was more comfortable bringing him to the new park for their initial visit rather than her new dog, Bug. The 7-month-old labradoodle is hyper and not well socialized yet, said James Bayles, though they do plan on bringing her to the park as her training progresses.

“Now that this is here, we have some place that we can bring her and wear her out,” James Bayles said.

The park is the first in the country to be fully ADA compliant, Nybank said, featuring a five-foot wide concrete path to the gazebo, wider gates and ADA approved fountains.

The park is a community effort, with more than 50 organizations, construction companies, suppliers, electricians and individuals among others who have donated toward the project. The 1.8-acre parcel adjacent to Panhandle Animal Shelter was donated by PAS, and the city will maintain the area as part of its park system upon completion.

The park features large and small dog areas with a large gazebo. The water fountains, benches and garbage cans match the style of existing features in Ponderay and Sandpoint, specifically in blue consistent with Ponderay. There is also be agility obstacles and activities for the dogs, shade trees, a granite rock sitting wall and more. The surface of the park gravel, which minimizes dust, pathogens and maintenance, Nybank said.

A trail along the outside of the fence allows socialization for dogs who aren’t quite ready to be off-leash inside the park, and also connects the dog park to McNearney Park.

A private grand opening was held this past Sunday at the dog park for the many people who helped the park become a reality, with a public grand opening event coming up this Sunday.

“We are very proud to be able to have a dog park next to the shelter, and when you look at it, people think that this is for the dogs,” said Mandy Evans, executive director for PAS, during the initial grand opening. “In reality, we know that with people working so much and the two-income households, that these animals need an outlet — they need a place to come and play … 30 minutes (of play) equals a two-hour walk. I don’t know anyone who has the time to take their dog for a two-hour walk. So they can bring their dog here, have an outlet, but also be able to have that companionship at home.”

Ponderay Mayor Steve Geiger said Ponderay is a “very special” community, as is the surrounding community, because so many people gave time and money to help create “such a great park.”

“I am thankful that we have the best dog park in the state of Idaho as far as I’m concerned,” Geiger said. “I have never seen anything this nice.”

Both Evans and Geiger credited the dog park’s success to Nybank, who researched dog parks across the country and raised enough money and donation of items for the park that it went up within a year after the shelter received a PetSafe grant for the fencing. Nybank, in turn, credited all of the donors and sponsors for the project’s success.

“I was here a lot and bugged everybody on the phone at all hours, texted and emailed and kind of kept the ball rolling with each of you to keep the order going,” Nybank said. “But if it wasn’t for you folks putting your work aside, bringing your labor, your materials, your dollars to this park, we wouldn’t have this. It is just an amazing opportunity that I had to be involved in this, and I am very proud of the community and very proud to be part of having this happen.”

The public grand opening is scheduled for 3-6 p.m. Sunday at the dog park, located next to PAS at 870 Kootenai Cutoff Road. Live entertainment will be provided by Neighbor John and the Atomic Blues Band.

Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.