FLORENCE, Ky. — Northern Kentucky dog lovers will have a new location to wet their whistle while their furry friends play starting this weekend. Bark Park and Patio will celebrate their grand opening on Saturday in Florence.
The dog park is over an acre and a half of fenced-in, grassy property for dogs to run around. Dog owners can then head to the taproom to grab a beer while their pup plays.
Once a tab is started, guests are given a card to activate the self-serve beer wall.
Owner Lee Cahill said he got the idea for Bark Park after visiting a local brewery where dogs were allowed on the patio.
“All the dogs were on leashes. You could tell they wanted to play, but they couldn’t,” he said.
That’s when he decided to open a bar with a full dog park attached to it.
“I decided I wanted to hit the reset button on my life, and I just dove headfirst into this idea,” Cahill said.
To enter, dogs will either need a day pass for $10, a month pass or a yearly membership.
Before dogs can enter the park, a copy of their vaccination records must be provided. Dogs also need to be spayed or neutered to play in the dog park.
“Bark Rangers” will patrol the park to make sure all dogs are safe and having fun.
“We hope people look at this as their own backyard, where they’re just letting their dogs play with the other dogs and can pour their beer as they’d like,” he said.
They will use plastic cups instead of glassware, to prevent any glass from shattering.
“We don’t want the glass to break and a puppy to cut its paw,” Cahill said.
They’ll use 100% compostable, renewable, plastic cups. They’re also featuring as many local breweries on tap as possible.
“We want to help build up the community and not compete with them,” he said.
Bark Park and Patio will be open on weekends from 10am-10pm from Saturday on.
“We’re hoping the morning hours would be the good for people who don’t know if their dogs are very sociable with other dogs,” he said.
People are encouraged to sign their waiver and upload the vaccination records online prior to coming to the park, so pups and owners can begin enjoying the space as quickly as possible.
