SWF, loves dogs, meet me at park

There are lots of dogs in this singles scene, but that's good, as dog parks continue to rocket in popularity.

[Times photos: Dirk Shadd] Tom Gavornik chats with Connie Coleman at Crescent Lake dog park in St. Petersburg Monday evening. Gavornik's dachshund, Eddie, is sitting on Coleman's lap, while Coleman's golden retriever, Rio, inspects something in the dirt as other dogs walk by.

By ALICIA CALDWELL, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 19, 2002

First you see the cars, lots of them, parked in what might seem to be an odd place. Then, you notice the people: Each of them with a dog, yet a little more well-turned out than you might expect for the chore of dog walking.

Honey relaxes as water drips from her whiskers. She was at Crescent Lake with Marcus Saskin, left, and another bouvier, Angus.

It's the dog park social scene, and it's taken off with surprising fervor. Dog park people are passionate -- about their dogs, about the virtues of dog parks and sometimes even about each other.

"It's kind of the new singles hangout," said Liz Warren, Pinellas County parks director and a big dog park proponent. "We've had some romances going in the park."

With his pooch, Mia, in tow as well as a couple of loaner English setters, Greg MacKillop, said he enjoys the company as much, or maybe more so, than his dog.

"I'm single and I enjoy the social aspect of it," said MacKillop, 28, a software developer who was at the Crescent Lake dog park in St. Petersburg on a recent afternoon. "There are a lot of nice people here."

Municipal dog parks have exploded in popularity in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties during the last year as at least 10 have opened, and another 11 are in various stages of planning. It's a burgeoning phenomenon with more than 600 across the country, according to Dogpark.com. No government-sanctioned dog parks exist in Hernando, Citrus or Pasco counties, although they've been discussed.

That dog parks have become something of a pickup scene is not a surprise to Johnny Zayas, 34, a Southwest Airlines pilot who frequently takes his dog, Georgie, to the Davis Islands park.

"It's not rare to come out here on a Friday afternoon and see people chillin' with a 12-pack," said the Tampa resident. "I'm married, but I tell you, if I was single I'd be coming here all the time."

The dog park scene is more like Starbucks on a Saturday morning than Ybor City on a Friday night, but the scene is an established concept in popular culture.

A 1999 romantic comedy called Dog Park, starring comedian Janeane Garofalo, tackled the phenomenon. It followed a group of young people who were looking for love and commitment at, of course, a dog park.

In promotions for the film, Garofalo was quoted as saying this:

"I don't know if it's a new trend or I just didn't notice it before, but starting a few years back in LA, I noticed a lot of flirting going on," according to ThePoop.com. "People would dress to the nines or wear as little as possible. Then in the New York dog park I use, I see these guys hitting on one girl, pretending to be interested in her dog."

Warren, who got the dog park craze rolling in Sarasota County six years ago, recalled one dog park romance in which the guy made his move by sneaking snacks to a dog belonging to a woman he wanted to meet.

She couldn't understand why her dog was always running over to this one guy. Eventually, she found something to like about him too, and the couple, Warren said, ended up marrying.

Not everyone in search of love at the dog park has had that kind of success.

"I've been here looking, but I haven't had much luck," said Ben Harling, 49, a disabled Vietnam veteran who lives in St. Petersburg. "I scare them off with my looks."

Harling was referring to his long hair, numerous tattoos and his 1966 Electra Glide Harley.

Nevertheless, he and his year-old Australian cattle dog, Tara, enjoy the nice folks who frequent the Crescent Lake dog park. If the weather cooperates, the place usually is pretty jammed around the dinner hour. The same pattern holds true in Hillsborough dog parks, and the singles scene aspect has been something of a surprise to Tampa parks director Ross Ferlita.

"Better than a laundromat, I guess," Ferlita said.

The attraction, said Warren of the Pinellas parks department, of course isn't solely romantic. It's a way for all kinds of people -- married or single, from nurses to restaurant workers to artists -- to find an immediate, personal connection.

"It's a great ice breaker that gets people to interact," Warren said. "It's a nice place to unwind and let go. It gets us off the computer and away from the TV. And you get a little fresh air and exercise -- what a concept."

The popularity of dog parks has taken some government officials by surprise.

St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker said that all over town, whether it be while he is running along Coffee Pot Bayou or attending neighborhood association meetings, people talk to him about dog parks.

"Everywhere I go people say to me, "We really love the dog parks,' " Baker said. "It's more than just have a place for dogs to run. It's a great gathering place for the community."

David Green agrees. He was thrilled when the city of Tampa put up a fence and installed a water fountain for dogs, formally recognizing the folks -- and their dogs -- who had been meeting near Peter O. Knight airport for years.

On a recent sunny day at the Davis Islands dog park, his large mutts, Reba and Telly, seemed pretty pleased as well.

"I don't know if it's more for them or more for me," said Green, 46, a restaurant manager in Ybor City. "I've met some good friends out here."

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