CAMP WALKER, Republic of Korea — July was a productive month for the Directorate of Public Works (DPW) at U.S. Army Garrison Daegu as the team opened a new dog park and started the design and layout phase for an upcoming skate park.
Both parks are the direct result of community feedback gathered during town halls held by the USAG Daegu garrison command team. The dog park was requested by Camp Walker residents to give their canine companions a large area to run unleashed.
"We have to avoid making decisions in a vacuum," said USAG Daegu Senior Enlisted Leader Command Sgt. Maj. Jonathon J. Blue. "We were able to find some wide open space based on the feedback from many of the residents in our Army Family Housing towers. We took that space and created something that's exactly what they asked for."
In some cases, it was even more than the residents asked for.
"The community wanted essentially a large field. Our DPW team went above and beyond. They laid down some sod. They've added park benches with overhead shade and some fountains so the dogs have water."
"The pet owners that I know absolutely love it. It's not a far walk from the housing towers and it's been well-received by the community."
With the dog park finished, DPW has shifted focus to a skate park near Camp Walker's Army Family Housing towers.
The skate park was an idea suggested by community youths during a series of teen forums held in fall 2021 at Daegu Middle High School. Those forums also prompted work on an updated teen center.
"Creating that skate park is something that we cannot do successfully without community input," said Blue.
The garrison command team joined representatives of DPW and the USAG Daegu Safety Office to discuss the skate park with area youths.
"When we do something, we want to ensure that the community has a voice in the decision-making process. DPW provides the engineering expertise to provide a product tailored to the needs of the community," said Chon Y. Kim, director of U.S. Army Garrison Daegu's Directorate of Public Works.
"We met with about a dozen kids at the future skate park site and asked them how they would like see the skate park set up," said Blue.
"Where would you like a half-pipe? Where would you like a launch pad? Where would you like some grind rails be placed so you can actually drop in from a ramp and get a good run in?"
"At the end of the day, the skateboard park is theirs. They deserve nothing but the best and our team is honored to serve our military members and their families," said Kim.
The Camp Walker skate park is projected to be completed fall 2022 and will be located next to Army Family Housing Tower 2 (Baekje Tower).
USAG Daegu is committed to making South Korea an assignment of choice by developing close partnerships with community partners and providing support services and programs for Soldiers, Families and Civilians that enhance quality of life and make the installations a great place to live and work.
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