Downtown Decatur dog 'oasis,' eatery gears up for construction

Fear not, Fido pamperers of Decatur! A recent pause in construction activity does not mean a fetching new dog park and restaurant concept is D.O.A., according to project leaders.  

Dog-centric hangout Off Leash, billed as a “state-of-the-art oasis for canines and dog owners,” is expected to move forward with construction within roughly the next month, according to Michael Wess, a Bull Realty partner who brokered the leasing deal.

Off Leash is slated to open this year on a prominent downtown Decatur corner across the street from Kimball House restaurant and the city’s popular Dairy Queen.

Joe May Cleaners, a dry-cleaning business, relocated from the lone building at 240 and 250 E. Trinity Place earlier this year, as preliminary construction work moved forward. That work has paused in recent months as the project’s main building permits were applied for with the city, according to Wess.

“Those [permits] are mostly approved, and construction should begin in the next month or so,” Wess wrote via email. “Everyone is very excited to officially break ground.”

The Decatur project will mark the second location for Off Leash, with the first expected to debut this summer on Alpharetta’s South Main Street.

Off Leash’s plans to open in Decatur this fall have been bumped back, likely to spring 2025, according to Wess.

The .65-acre property in question includes an open field that’s long been a blank spot in downtown Decatur’s otherwise walkable, vibrant urban fabric. Next door is a low-rise building where the dry cleaners had operated before vacating to a new location nearby.

An Off Leash company statement previously provided to Urbanize describes the concept as a “premium dog park” where “doggie dreams come true.” Expect an indoor restaurant (for humans) offering a “casual, yet elevated, dining experience” with a large patio attached. (The patio will be dog-friendly, of course.) Next to that will be a private dog park, partially covered, that “will provide space for year-round play so pups and their people can let loose rain or shine,” reads the company statement.

Off Leash will also offer doggie memberships for return visitors. The company promises a team of trained “dogtenders” will be on hand to ensure cleanliness and that pooches are behaving themselves.

Off Leash won’t be the only dog-focused social concept to set up shop ITP soon.

As first reported on these pages, a 1950s office complex in Edgewood near Pullman Yards is expected to become the first Georgia location of Skiptown, a “Disneyland for dogs.” That company’s website states the third announced Skiptown location will debut on Arizona Avenue sometime this summer.

Find more context and marketing materials that illustrate how the Decatur corner site will be activated soon. 

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