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- Written by: Matt Wilson - Breese Journal Reporter
Breese Dog Park Alderman Jason Davinroy announced during the April 7 Breese City Council meeting that the tentative opening date for the Breese Dog Park will be Friday, May 1.
The dog park is located at the Breese Soccer Park on Holy Cross Lane north of town.
The opening date is dependent on the weather. The park is slated to be open at sunrise.
The dog park will be run by the City of Breese and it falls under the Parks Department jurisdiction.
"We are very excited to have the dog park open and we think it will be great for the community," said Walker Mondt, who was one of the driving forces of getting the dog park in Breese.
J-Square Fence LLC completed the fencing for the park in early January. The park includes water spigots. A padlock was placed on the dog park to keep the dogs out during the winter and early spring months to allow the dirt areas time to grow grass for the spring.
Davinroy said he feels like the area will be ready for the May 1 opening.
The project has been nearly three years in the making. Nearly $30,000 was raised through dog walks, golf scrambles, pooch playoffs, Super Bowl square boards, barks and brews bar hops, trivia nights, and business donation days.
Mondt said people are getting dogs and they are becoming part of the family. He said a dog park is a place in the community where people can get together and do things.
"At a human level, this is just a place in the community where people can get together," Mondt said. "At a utility level, some people might want to have dogs but have small yards. This would allow them a place to have a dog in their life if they want it."
There are dog parks in Carlyle and Aviston and Mondt said the dog park in Breese will be similar to Aviston's dog park. Highland also has a dog park with many interactive toys for dogs.
The idea for the dog park started in 2023.
A contingent of people, headed by Mondt, attended the Breese City Council meeting in August 2023, trying to get a dog park established in the city.
On April 16, 2024, the Breese City Council unanimously voted to locate the Breese Dog Park at Breese Soccer Park.
They were looking at either putting the dog park at the soccer park off Holy Cross Lane or at the northwest corner of Northside Park by Hannah's Playground. At that time, the city felt like the best location for the dog park was at the soccer park.
Abby Niemeyer-Brauer and Mondt co-chaired the Breese Dog Park committee.
"We're so excited to finally see everything come together and watch the gates open," Niemeyer-Brauer said. "We truly couldn't have done it without the incredible support from our community at all of our events, and we definitely couldn't have completed it without the generosity of our local businesses. Everyone really came together to make this happen."
Mondt said the idea for the dog park actually started in 2017 when Boy Scout Logan Van Ness wanted to do a dog park for his Eagle Scout project. He brought the idea to Breese City Council, but was unable to get the dog park idea going.
Mondt said a lot of Van Ness' ideas were starting points for Mondt when they brought the dog park idea up the second time in 2023.
- Details
- Written by: Matt Wilson - Breese Journal Reporter
Wyatt Nothaus is sworn in by clerk Rita Jurgensmeyer as a new officer for the Carlyle Police Department. Photo by Matt Wilson Two new officers for the Carlyle Police Department were sworn in during the Carlyle City Council meeting on Monday, April 13.
Wyatt Nothaus and Hunter Osborne were both sworn in by clerk Rita Jurgensmeyer.
Both are new officers and will attend the SWIC Police Academy in Belleville in May. The Carlyle Police Department is back at full staff.
During the March 23 meeting, the council approved the hiring of Chris Jansen and Nothaus as police officers. Jansen's resignation was approved during the April 13 meeting.
During the zoning/planning portion of the meeting, the council approved a variance request for Southtown Estates third addition.
City Administrator Brad Myers received a variance request from Stanley Becker. There was a meeting on March 24 to get approval for the addition. Becker requested the zoning commission relax the Carlyle street standards to the Clinton County standards. They want to extend the current Becker Lane and open up 17 more lots. Becker requested the width be 20 feet, which is county standard. Carlyle has authority over zoning a mile and a half outside of city limits, so anything that is built has to get the council approval.
The county said if the city didn't approve the variance, it won't go to the county. Carlyle ordinances say new subdivisions have to have concrete roads, curb and gutter. Becker said they are going to oil and chip the road three layers.Hunter Osborne is sworn in by clerk Rita Jurgensmeyer as a new officer for the Carlyle Police Department. Photo by Matt Wilson
Only one Carlyle Zoning Board member disapproved of the variance. As long as the road was oil and chipped and maintained by the county, the zoning board approved the variance.
The variance will now go to the Clinton County Board.
Before the county accepts the road, they are going to make sure it is done to county specifications. Once the county accepts the variance, they will have the responsibility of maintaining the road.
April 20-24 has been designated for leaf and brush pickup. Residents are asked to remain patient because city employees are working on a big project on Lake Vista Drive.
May 1-2 is the city-wide yard sales. May 6-8 will be clean-up week. The gates will be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. On May 9, the gates will open from 8 a.m. to noon. Gates could be open a little later on May 9.
Myers commended all of the work currently going on at Lake Vista Drive. On April 9, city workers poured 116 yards of concrete.
"It was amazing to watch," Smith said. "They had at least 17 guys there knee deep in concrete, striping it off and finishing. It was impressive. This is the first time where we have had an occasion where a contractor asked to work with the city crew. They are doing a fantastic job out there."
Myers said to be patient on the leaf and limb pickup.
Smith read a proclamation making April Child Abuse Prevention Month.
"I was in education for 37 years and during that 37 years I don't know how many kids that went through my classrooms," Smith said. "I can tell you that one of the most heartbreaking situations is when you have a child eight hours a day with you and you don't want that child to go home. To me, this is very near and dear to my heart. There are far more children out there than there should be who live in abusive relationships. The more we can do to get them to a safer environment, the better off it is for us in the long run."
