Forest Park — Attraction in Gainesville

I have been using Forest Park for several years and have seen zero improvements to the dog park. I know it recently transferred hands from county to city and both entities should be ashamed how poor this park is. Now the responsibility falls on the city. The park is a decent size and shaded rather well. The lack of seating options is rather poor. Two tables and one bench is all. About 1/3 of the dog park is sand and owners let their dogs go buck wild digging really deep holes. The city should be filling these holes in weekly by grading the sand and making it level. The grass can get high at times and makes me curious what the mowing schedule is like. The worse thing about this park is the water fountain. It’s broken. The only working water is a water hose for the entire park! THE ENTIRE PARK! Kids from the basketball courts have to come into the park to get water and drink from the hose. This not only dehumanizes them but isn’t sanitary nor is it a good mix having kids running in and out of the gates leaving them open and agitating the dogs. A spring tensioned gate would help mitigate that issue. Fixing these issues, especially the water fountain should be done promptly. Not pushed off due “lack...

Forest Park is now named Abby Wambach. Funds were utilized from the Wild Spaces and Public Places project to update the park. Updates included: revitalized soccer fields with shade and shelter, pickleball courts integrated with the basketball courts and beach volleyball. There is also a dog run at the park. Parking can get pretty congested, especially on days when there are soccer matches taking place. There are two parking areas. One is paved and the other is gravel. The latter of the two is not ideal for those driving larger,...

I love bringing my dog here to run around and burn off his energy. Though a recent incident at the park leaves me concerned. There is a lot of dirt and sand around the park which the dogs love to dig holes in (mine included) but while I was walking into the dog area I fell in one of the holes and badly injured my ankle. I believe it is the county's responsibility to ensure the safety for everyone at the park, owners and dogs alike. I sadly feel I have to resource to another park until the problem...