“We’re honored in a way that we can be a part of what my parents started back in ’83.”
Fritz Wahlfield, Jr’s parents donated the original 50 acres that served as the starting point for Wahlfield Park in northern Kent County. Over 40 years later, the Wahlfield family cut the ribbon on the park’s latest expansion, Wahlfield Dog Park, the first dedicated dog park in the Kent County Parks system.
“I worked side by side with my father my whole life, or while he was around, and he was so generous in many ways that I thought, ‘Why can’t I do this on the second generation?’”
The Wahlfield family, which operates the Fritz Wahlfield Construction Company, contributed $120,000 toward the $5.1 million total. The four acre dog park includes a swimming pond with dog beach and jumping dock, walking trails, activity field and a dog wash station.
“When we first envisioned it on that conceptual drawing back in 2018, I could envision it because I’m in the business and say, ‘You know what? We’ve got to be part of this,’ and look at reality of what it is today.”
Other park improvements include a new entrance, parking lot, pavilions, and a mountain bike trailhead restroom, made possible through public investment, private philanthropy, and community partnerships.
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