Let’s hear you howl, Lynchburg.
After one week of voting, the city is in second place in PetSafe’s national “Bark for Your Park” contest, which is giving 15 finalist communities a shot at winning $100,000 for a new dog park.
Voting continues for another two weeks, and local supporters are hard at work trying to catapult Lynchburg into the top spot.
“The city is doing pretty well, but we’ve got to kick it into high gear if we want to win that $100,000,” said city parks manager Andy Reeder. “It’s a very competitive contest, so we need to vote every day and get other people in town excited about it, too.”
The “Bark for Your Park” contest allows supporters to vote every day until the end of the voting period on Aug. 3. Each person can cast up to two votes per day — once at the contest’s web site and once on PetSafe’s Facebook page.
Lynchburg, which beat out hundreds of other communities to make it into the finals, had gotten off to a strong start in the voting, quickly bounding into the No. 1 spot on the first day.
The city has since slipped into second place, though, trailing Huntington, W.V.
Hill City supporters are now working to increase awareness — and most importantly, voting.
“We need your vote!” read a recent mass email sent out by the Friends of the Lynchburg Dog Park, a citizens group created to start up a dog park in the city.
Lynchburg currently offers no dog parks or other areas where dogs are permitted to play off-leash, but the city has agreed to start a park if citizens can raise the money for the needed fencing and equipment.
The Friends of the Lynchburg Dog Park, a registered nonprofit, was incorporated last year to lead the fundraising effort. Winning the “Bark for Your Park” prize would single-handedly fill its coffers and make the dog park a reality.
Dog parks are sought-after amenities because of the opportunities for exercise and socialization they create for man’s best friend. PetSafe, a Tennessee-based pet products company, said it was inspired to organize “Bark for Your Park” after seeing how dog parks have enhanced its own community.
“PetSafe has funded dog parks in the company’s hometown of Knoxville, Tenn., so we’ve seen firsthand the excitement and benefit of having local dog parks,” said company spokeswoman Lauren Christ.
“It’s going to be really exciting to bring a park to another town and celebrate with all of the supporters that helped their community bark for that park,” she said.
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