Final approval given for two dog parks Final approval given for two dog parks (February 16, 2005)

In about five weeks, your dog will be able to bark in the park completely stark -- without a leash, that is.

But not in the dark. The off-leash hours approved by the Menlo Park City Council on February 10 are 8 to 10 a.m. weekdays at Nealon Park, and 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. to dusk at Willow Oaks Park.

Dogs can have a lark in the fenced ball field at Nealon or the soon-to-be fenced 20,000-square-foot area at Willow Oaks. The cost of the dog parks -- including signs and dispensers for clean-up bags -- is estimated at $45,000, which would come from general fund reserves.

But, hark: A resident also told the council that dog owners had raised $6,000 to help defray the costs.

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