Children and puppies in Grays Harbor County soon could be a lot happier.

The county Planning Division is considering replacing the play structure at Vance Creek County Park as well as adding a play area for pooches.

“I want to get the public involved in this because this is a feel-good project. And we don’t get a lot of those,” Mark Cox, the county’s director of community development, said.

“The play structure is in really bad shape,” Cox said. He said there have been safety concerns that have prompted the county to take parts of it down.

“We just need to get it out of there. It’s outlived its useful life. Our budget is around $60,000. Plus there are grant opportunities we’ve been looking at,” he said. He hope some money can be saved by using county personnel for construction.

A dog park could go on the south side of Vance Creek Pond No. 1, the east lake, north of Wenzel Slough Road.

Cox said there could be separate spaces for both large and small dogs totaling about 2 acres.

A 4-foot fence, with a double-gated entry on the west side, would surround the area.

“My plan was to work with the 4-H kids who already have a dog program to figure out what kind of obstacles or play equipment could be added for the dogs,” he said.

Cox expects the dog park to cost about $27,000 to establish. He has requested money for both projects next year.

The dog park project also could include landscaping with trees planted along the road.

The human play area could come in two phases with one for smaller kids and one for larger kids, Cox said.

“We want to make this more of a community process. I don’t want to just pick what is going to go out in the park,” Cox said. “I do want to have community investment in this. I want to have a public meeting.”

No meetings had been scheduled as of yet.

(Google Maps) The proposed playground replacement and dog park areas at Vance Creek County Park in Elma.