Residents propose park honoring Dick Goddard

Residents will start a fundraising campaign to establish a dog park in honor of the late Dick Goddard.

Residents will start a fundraising campaign later this year to establish a dog park in honor of the late Dick Goddard in Vermilion.

Goddard, longtime WJWTV personality and meteorologist and founder of Vermilion’s Woolleybear Festival, died Aug. 4. He was 89.

Sandy Coe, executive director of the Vermilion Chamber of Commerce, brought the idea of honoring Goddard with a dog park to an Aug. 18 City Council Parks and Recreation Board meeting.

Coe said during the meeting that she also spoke with Marilou Suszko, executive director of Main Street Vermilion, about the idea of creating the dog park.

Suszko said the fundraiser campaign was planned to kick-off Oct. 4, which would require an additional six weeks prior to get the planning portion underway and a location picked out.

Ideas that would need to be worked out could come from interested community members, including fencing, a double-gated entry, separate small and large dog areas and a water source, according to Suszko.

She recommended a space that is at least three acres, which would give ample room for a two-acre dog park.

Chairman Terry Parker said the city has a few potential locations in its parks for the integration of a dog park.

Ward 5 Councilman Brian Holmes said he knows that Sherod Park has both the space and water source connection at the old baseball field in the park, which could make for a potential location.

Mayor Jim Forthofer said once the fundraising campaign starts, the city’s finance department will collect donations similarly to how donations once were collected for the operation of the city’s community pool.

THE MORNING JOURNAL FILE Master Woolly Bear Dick Goddard pontificates on the weather in 2009 before the 37th annual Woolly Bear Parade.