BY ANDY OLIVAN
Residents of Bay Ridge gathered for the ribbon cutting on the opening of a Dog Run named in honor of fellow resident Frank Decolvenaere on Friday, September 15, at Shore Road and Third Avenue, Brooklyn.
They were joined by New York City Department of Parks and Recreation Brooklyn Borough Commissioner Martin Maher, State Senator Andrew Gounardes, and City Council Member Justin Brannan, who allocated the necessary funds in making the project and was an essential advocate in getting the dog park named after Frank.
Decolvenaere who was 66, had lived in Bay Ridge for over twenty years, where he and his wife raised their two children, according to the park’s registry on the NYC Parks website. He practiced law in New York City for four decades in a career in copyright litigation. He was known for always walking his dog outside.
On March 5, 2020, a little after 7 p.m. while walking his dog across the intersection of 101st St and Fourth Ave, Decolvenaere was killed by a 19-year-old driving a Mercedez-Benz. His bloodied puppy named, Stormy, limped 10 blocks back to its home where Frank’s wife, Demetra, was cooking dinner, according to the Daily Mail website.
“The dog came home without Frank. There’s something really just brutal and beautiful about that, just the relationship between pets and their owners,” said Brannon after the ceremony. “As a lifelong animal lover, just a really precious story I think needed to be told and sort of give a special meaning to this dog run.”
Demetra Decolvanaere said that the dog had a rough recovery. “It was long but okay, I mean she had a crushed pelvis and so we had to basically not let her walk for a while,” said Ms. Decolvenaere, regarding Stormy’s resilience after the accident.
A friend set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for the hospital bills when Stormy was admitted to the VERG Animal Hospital.
Funded for $1 million dollars, the dog-run project transformed an unused asphalt space into a welcoming environment for residents of the community to walk their dogs and commemorate the life of Frank Decolvenare.
“This was a vacant lot that people used for on-and-off soccer games or unofficial illegal dog run for years. There was never real any purpose for it,” said Brannon. “It’s a beautiful view right by the bridge and we just had the idea to turn it into a real official dog run, put some money behind it and here it is.”
Decolvenaere’s son, Michael, was appreciative of the community efforts behind what would be considered his father’s legacy. “We’re really humbled that the community came together to celebrate my father this way, it’s very touching. My dad loved this community and he loved his dog so we really can’t think of a better way to remember him.”
The dog run accommodates all dogs by including separate areas for big and small dogs. It provides people with an accessible walkway where they can take a seat on the benches the park has incorporated. A dog-friendly water fountain was built to allow dogs easy access to drinking water. The design also includes synthetic turf and natural grass. The project was started in July 2022 by the Parks Department and was completed by July 2023.
