West Villages Improvement District: Blue Heron Park Opens for area residents in West Villages

North Port Sun
Alexandra Herrera Sta f Writer
Jan 2, 2019

WEST VILLAGES — As West Villages continues to grow, its newest facility is not only for residents, but for their four-legged friends.

Blue Heron Park, which opened in early December, boasts not only walking and running trails, but two dog parks. The parks cater to both small and large dogs and include shaded seating, a water fountain for dogs and just a place for canines to play.

One of those dogs is Farley, owned by Jeff Collins of IslandWalk who has been enjoying the newest amenity to his corner of North Port. After walking Farley, he along with his wife, Judy, come out to let Farley stretch his legs and play with other dogs.

The dog park is located in the new 33-acre Blue Heron Park just off River Road behind Renaissance at the West Villages. Along with the trails and dog park, residents of Renaissance and the Oasis have their own gated entrance to enjoy the park.

Blue Heron is the first public park in the West Villages, which will cater to community.

Sondra Guffey, marketing manager for the West Villages said from beginning to end the project took two years. The first year was the planning and the second year was building the park.

“(We) gauged what residents wanted,” Guffey said. The park has 2 miles of walking and running trails, along with the space for the dogs. Guffey said it’s a place for residents to gather. “It’s a neighborhood park,” Guffey said.

Guffey added that the West Villages did a survey four years ago of people who chose to not buy a home and found that many said it was because of the lack of a dog park.

“This is important to them,” Guffey said.

Dog owners, like the Collins of IslandWalk, love the park.“(It’s) really nice,” Collins said. Prior to the park being built he would take Farley to a dog park on Appomattox Drive in the Jockey Club. Collins likes the park because it’s closer to home and the facilities are nice. He said since he began coming, the most he has seen is eight to 10 dogs in the morning.

Not only is Collins excited about the park, but the continued progress in the West Villages.

Going into this new year, he’s looking forward to seeing the development in the area, like the addition of the Marketplace and CoolToday Park — spring training home of the Atlanta Braves.

As for the West Villages, Guffey said they are looking at other places to put more parks and green spaces. While she added another location has not been selected, there are plans for more parks in the future.

“We know it’s an amenity (the) residents like,” Guffey said.

Blue Heron Park is open from dawn to dusk daily and is located at 501 N. River Road.

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate