Pet owners who have grown accustomed to taking their pooches for a walk/run at Paws Town at Boardman Park will now have to pay a yearly fee to use the 3.25-acre, fenced-in facility.
      The grounds opened to the public last year and has been open to allow the public to ‘try out’ the facility, according to Angela Davis, of the park district.
      Paws Town is located at Boardman Park at the Southern Boulevard entrance. It is has separate fenced-in areas for large and small dogs.
      Some of the amenities include water fountains for dogs and people, benches, and plenty of room for dogs to run off leash.
      Amenities that will be added at a future date will include trees for shade, landscaping, fire hydrants and areas with a wood fiber surface.
      Marge Hartman’s Paws Town, a volunteer-non-profit organization, partnered with Boardman Park to create Boardman Township’s first dog park.
      Memberships will be good for one year from Apr. 1 to Mar. 31, 2015. Membership fees will not be prorated.
      Memberships for Boardman residents will be $40 for one dog and $10 for each additional dog. Non-Boardman resident fees will be $65 for one dog and $10 for each additional dog. Membership packets can be picked up at the Boardman Park Office, in the outdoor literature boxes at the dog park or online at boardmanpark.com
      Beginning Apr. 1, everyone using Paws Town Dog Park must have a membership in order to ensure that all dogs are healthy and vaccinated.
      The Marge Hartman Paw Town Dog Park is currently selling memorial trees and brick forms that can be found online at Pawstown.org or can be picked up at the Park Office for those who wish to donate a memorial to their pets.
      Paws Town at Boardman Park was the concept of Boardman Township Administrator Jason Loree and his wife, Abbey. They organized a committee to discuss the formation of a dog park in Oct., 2009.