Dogs in Cathedral City officially have a new hangout spot — Panorama Dog Park. 

The new dog park, located within Panorama Park, had a ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday to mark its official opening. City officials and residents gathered at the park with their pets to celebrate the occasion. 

Councilmember Raymond Gregory, who represents District 5 where the dog park is located, said it's wonderful to have the project — which he had supported from the beginning — become a reality. 

Gregory said he believes it will be heavily used. The city, as a soft opening, had left the dog park's gates unlocked in the mornings earlier this week. People have already started adding a dog park pit stop to their daily routine, Gregory said.  

“I think it's also going to really tighten up … the fabric of our local community, because people that (haven’t) had a reason to talk to each other — as they’re here with their dogs —  they’re interacting and sharing things that are important to them,” he said. 

Erin Hyland, a parks and community events commissioner, said the dog park is a great way for residents to connect with one another. Residents had been telling the city they wanted a dog park, she added.  

“When you come to the dog park, (you’re) usually there for an hour and you get to talk to people and you get to interact so much more than just doing a walk around the lap,” she said. 

Cathedral City also has another dog park, located on Buddy Rogers Avenue. It has 15 reviews and two stars on Yelp as of Friday, with a common criticism being that it has wood chips instead of grass. That park is not owned by the city, according to Gregory.  

The new Panorama Dog Park is fenced off and divided into two sections for small and large dogs to play on opposite sides. The dog park includes grass, drink stations for people and dogs, seating and shade. 

Its total cost was $610,000. Councilmembers raised the budget for the park by $110,000 in January due the rising costs of materials, shading and fencing. 

Residents who attended the dog park’s opening on Friday were thrilled about the new addition. 

Phillip Schmidt has been taking his three dogs — Captain, Morgan and Chloe — to dog parks in other cities despite living in Cathedral City. He said he’s excited to see the new dog park open. 

“It's closer for me and they did a really good job,” he said. “This looks really nice.” 

Susan Poe brought her French Bulldog, Mochi, to the event. Poe moved to Cathedral City from Illinois last year. She said she has loved living near Panorama Park. 

“I think (the dog park) brings a lot of people together and (it’s) obviously an outlet for the dogs,” she said. 

Despite not having a dog, Ron Coronado said he was at the opening because it “has been the talk for awhile.” He said residents have been looking forward to it. 

“It's now a place where dogs can be off leash and socialize with other dogs and things like that,” he said.

Cathedral City also has plans to create another dog park at the location of the former Second Street Park, according to Gregory. The city will make further improvements to Panorama Park and other city parks as well.

The Panorama Dog Park is located within Panorama Park at 28-905 Avenida Maravilla. 

Ani Gasparyan covers the western Coachella Valley cities of Desert Hot Springs and Cathedral City. Reach her at ani.gasparyan@desertsun.com.