BUCHANAN — Whenever Jackie Lowe wanted to take her dogs Coco and Little Bits to a dog park, she would have to drive from her home in Buchanan to South Bend.

Lowe and a group of residents and fellow dog lovers have been working to change that and bring a local park to their hometown. After more than eight years of raising funds and transforming the former Rennhack Field ballpark, the aptly named Buchanan Field of Dreams Dog Park will finally be coming to fruition.

The park will officially open Saturday, July 21, at 578 Smith St., which is located inside the McCoy’s Creek Recreation Area, south of the Buchanan High School football field. To celebrate, there will be a grand opening ceremony at 10 a.m. As part of the ceremony, those who attend are encouraged to dress up their dogs and take part in a doggie parade. Those who would like to participate should meet in the McCoy Creek Recreation Area parking lot. Following that, there will be a “leash cutting” to commemorate to the occasion. The park will be open seven days a week from dawn to dusk.

Lowe, the chairperson of the dog park committee, said she was ecstatic to officially open the park to the community.

“It’s been a long haul,” Lowe said. “We have been at this for many years. I can’t even begin to describe how wonderful it is to finally see it.”

Though it may seem like the name of the park was influenced by the committee’s efforts to renovate a vacant field into a park, much like the popular movie “Field of Dreams,” Lowe said the name actually came before the park.

While the committee had been in operation for several years, it was not until last fall when they identified the ballpark as a potential space. The city of Buchanan, which owns the property, has permitted the Buchanan Field of Dreams Dog Park to use the former ballfield for the dog park.

While the location was ideal, because the ballfield was already fenced in, there was some concern about its proximity to a well head and the McCoy Creek. Lowe said officials from the state visited the park and determined that it was more than 500 feet from the water sources and this was considered a safe distance.

The committee had to raise about $5,000 to fund phase one of the park. Business sponsorship and various community fundraisers, such as selling popsicles at the Thrill on the Hill event helped to raise money, too.

“What I’m the proudest of is that this has become totally a community park,” Lowe said.

The funds raised covered the cost to fence in a small dog area and to create a double gate entrance into the park, as well as the purchase of benches, signs and repair material.

For phase two, the park committee wants to install a walkway from the parking lot to the park. This phase will also include the installation of drinking fountains. For phase three, Lowe said the park committee wants to install agility play equipment. Lowe said she does not yet have an estimate or timeframe for these project phases.

Prior to opening up the park, Lowe said there are a few minor things to complete. The signs need to be mounted and section of the fence needs to be repaired.

On Wednesday, Lowe visited the Buchanan Field of Dreams Dog Park to let her dogs Coco and Little Bits run free.

Seeing the dogs play, it was easy to see other pet owners and four-legged friends alike enjoying the space. 

“It’s going to a great place for dogs to exercise,” Lowe said. “And a place for dogs to be dogs.”

To learn more about the dog park, visit facebook.com/groups/Buchanandogpark.