Today we’d like to introduce you to Todd Agosto.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the community project, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Four years ago I discovered the wonder of dog parks with my pup Charlie. Every day we’d go to a different dog park, meeting new pups and their puparents and in the process learned a great deal about the value they hold for the community that frequents them. In the process, we discovered that all the dog parks in the city we’re located either downtown or on the Northside.
Since we live on the Southside it was a challenge in time, gas and feeding parking meters. Digging deeper into the subject, we found out that the city doesn’t fund nor maintain any of the dog parks. The park district requires the community that wants a dog park to raise a minimum of $150K. I figured by the time I raised that kind of money, our pups would have passed, unfortunately, they don’t live as long as we do… so I decided to spend an hour a day and what money I could spare in building one.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I never sought or received permission from the park district, so since day one, any day could have been our last. Considering the time that has passed, the park district has clearly been gracious enough to look the other way, until as of late; with their endorsement of Tiger Woods redesign of the golf course located just south of us, our days may be numbered. Woods’ design firm TGR Design made a proposal this past summer to expand the driving range, located right next door, in our direction, which would wipe us from the map.
Please tell us about Jackson Bark.
Jackson Bark is a community dog park located in and named after Jackson Park. The dog park is an adaptive reuse of four abandoned tennis courts built with over 90% recycled materials. With over 20 dog parks in Chicago and a 100 throughout the state, Jackson Bark is the first dog park on the south side and the largest 100% enclosed dog park in the city; plus has more amenities, safety features, and photo-ops than any other dog park in the state.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
As the proverbial adage goes “hindsight is always 20/20”. The development of the dog park has been a slow evolution and learning experience in exploring how different materials perform in different weather conditions. ie high winds, dew, frost, ice etc..
Contact Info:
- Address: 6000 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60637
- Website: JacksonBark.com
- Email: admin@JacksonBark.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/jacksonbark/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jackson-Bark-499238500202684/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/JacksonBarkNews
- Yelp: http://www.yelp.com/biz/jackson-bark-chicago-2
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
