Strongsville is putting the finishing touches on a 4.5-acre dog park at Volunteer Park, and city officials have confirmed the long-awaited off-leash space won't open until spring 2027. The Strongsville Community Dog Park, tucked along Lunn Road west of Prospect Road and south of Ohio 82, has grown from an early concept into a nearly $326,000 municipal project backed by state grant money, a private civic organization and a local business club.
The project cleared a financial milestone this month when Strongsville City Council formally accepted $175,000 in outside funding on September 8, according to Cleveland.com. That total includes a $150,000 state capital appropriation, plus a $25,000 donation from the Strongsville City Club, a private civic organization. Separately, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources' NatureWorks grant program was created after Ohio voters approved the Parks and Natural Resources Bond Issue in November 1993. Under NatureWorks guidelines authorized by Ohio Revised Code Section 1557.06, grant awards are capped by county allocation at a $150,000 maximum per project and require a 25% match, with at least 20% of the funding source coming from local funds. Recipient governments must hold long-term control of the property.
From State of the City Speech to Shovels in the Ground
Mayor Tom Perciak first announced plans for the dog park during his State of the City address on March 10, crediting the Strongsville Women's League for bringing the idea to city leaders, according to the City of Strongsville. The League has since taken on a fundraising role alongside the city, launching a “Lick for a Brick” campaign that lets residents buy personalized engraved bricks to pave walkways through the park, with proceeds going toward construction and future maintenance.
Perciak has said the finished park will be completely enclosed, ringed by a 6-foot-tall chain-link fence with double-gated entryways designed to keep dogs secure while owners come and go. Plans call for separate play areas for large and small dogs, a fenced-in wooded nature trail for off-leash walks, pet waste stations, dog-friendly water fountains, and sun shelters with benches and picnic tables.
Site Prep Pushes Timeline Into Next Year
What began as a fall 2026 target has slipped. The opening was initially targeted for fall, and by September the city had settled on spring 2027. Strongsville's assistant engineer, Lori Daley, said crews have already graded the 4.5-acre site, installed drainage pipes and water lines, built two shade structures and cut the nature walking paths. Still to come: a dog-wash bay, water fountains, benches, trash receptacles and the perimeter fencing, followed by seeding once those features are in place.
Most of the labor is being handled by Strongsville Service Department employees, though the city has brought in outside contractors for parts of the build. The dog park sits adjacent to Volunteer Park. Once finished, the site will be owned and maintained long-term by the Strongsville Parks and Recreation Department.
A Community Effort Around a Pet Amenity
The dog park is a municipal project supported by state funding and local civic organizations.
Part of a Regional Off-Leash Trend
Strongsville's project follows a similar move by neighboring communities. Parma and Parma Heights opened a joint 1-acre Reservoir Paw Park in August 2026 using $100,000 in combined county grant funding, part of a total spend between $120,000 and $175,000, as Hoodline reported after that project's own long push toward completion. Strongsville's dog park, at roughly four and a half times the acreage, marks one of the larger entries in that regional trend toward suburban off-leash spaces.
