One of downtown Atlanta’s signature, historic greenspaces now features a core amenity for modern-day urban life: an off-leash dog park. 

Atlanta Department of Parks and Recreation officials and their partners last week cut the ribbon on the 6,500-square-foot addition to Woodruff Park, marking the first public dog park option in downtown. 

Set beneath mature hardwood trees, the dog park features both small and large-dog sections for Fidos to frolic off-leash at the recently upgraded, 6-acre greenspace, which dates back more than 40 years (and to the early 1970s as Central City Park) in the Fairlie-Poplar district. 

Designs included additional lighting and seating, decorative fencing, improved drainage, and a durable turf meant for canines, according to Department of Parks and Recreation officials. 

Courtesy of City of Atlanta Department of Parks and Recreation

Mashed Potato (left), Downtown Atlanta Inc.’s Golden Doodle. Courtesy of City of Atlanta Department of Parks and Recreation

The broader goal of downtown’s first pooch playground is to provide another reason for a growing population of full-time residents to relax and socialize, alongside downtown visitors, students, and workers.  

Downtown boosters say the district’s dog population has grown alongside its official resident count, and the dog park was pinpointed in the most recent Strategic Plan as a priority investment to help enhance quality of life. 

The project “transforms an underutilized area into a vibrant community asset, creating a safe, accessible space for dogs to play and neighbors to connect,” said Doug Voss, Department of Parks and Recreation commissioner, in an announcement. 

The dog park came together through a design-build collaboration between Reeves Young contractors and Kimley-Horn & Associates engineering and design firm. 

Turf installation and other upgrades underway in Woodruff Park in July. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Looking west over Woodruff Park, toward Centennial Olympic Park, several years ago. Shutterstock

The scope of the project also refreshed Woodruff Park’s iconic ATL playground with accessible new seating and lighting. Throughout the park, sidewalk and pathway improvements and upgrades to ADA accessibility were also made, per city officials. 

A Park Pride grant funded early design work for the Woodruff Park Dog Park.  

According to the Department of Parks and Recreation, construction was funded by State of Georgia-administered Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, along with an Improving Neighborhood Outcomes in Disproportionately Impacted Communities grant program.

Downtown's Woodruff Park in 2024. Shutterstock

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