Great dog park. Pretty busy in the evenings, lots a great dogs. We found people to be very friendly. A couple of interesting people, but otherwise very nice, responsible dog owners.

The park is pretty large as others have stated. Lots of shade and sitting areas. The artificial grass is a welcomed change from dirt or real lawns that eventually die.

This dog park is one of the better city parks I've been to in San Jose. Before SCDP, I was taking my lab to Cottonwood Park off 101 and Hellyer. There are usually no restrooms at a dog park, as far as I have seen. There are public restrooms at the opposite end of the Saratoga Creek Trail - several hundred feet past the dog park. This is not part of the dog park, however.

As for children in SCDP, yes I have seen children who are clearly too young to be running around in the park. From time to time they get kissed by dogs. Do people without children get upset over this? No. I think what the poster who made mention of this was trying to get at is that there's general concern for unattended children and unattended dogs running around in the same park together. Is the dog park and appropriate place for you to bring your toddler to run around? Absolutely not. There are plenty of parks out there for humans!!

As for the clique-ishness of SCDP, it exists in two forms. There are those who have befriended each other because they use the park regularly, which should be seen as a good thing not a negative thing against the park. Then there are those who see the dog park as nothing more than reward for their pent up dog. Mix the two together and you get the occasional argument over misbehaved dogs. San Jose Code clearly states that misbehaved dogs are not allowed in the park, and it's not up to park goers to decide what is and what is not defined as misbehaved.

As for the area for a small dog section, the option was given when the city's Parks and Recreation folks came out and spoke at a meeting. There was not an overwhelming response to have a separate area for small dogs and so they decided not to make one. Does that mean it will be that way forever? Of course not.

If you have concerns about the facilities, I encourage you to contact the City of San Jose's Parks and Recreation Department. They have been welcoming and responsive each time I've had an issue with the facility.

This park has good points and bad points.

I like the new turf. It's springy. There are pooper scoopers and several covered trash bins that are chained to the fence. The entry system is what you'd expect: two doors with a holding area in between. There are usually several dogs or more when I go.

There is no small dog area. The people are clique-ish, as one poster mentioned. They even have dinner together. It's great if you're one of them, I suppose, but if you're not, and you or your dog offend them in some way, you will get shunned by everyone.

What really irks me, though, is that several times that I've been there, people have brought in their small children. Just because the rules don't explicitly prohibit children doesn't mean you should bring them in. I see them knocked down by exuberant puppies all the time. What's funny is, the parents don't get ruffled about it, but some of the clique-y people (who don't bring children), DO! They get all up in the face of the owners of the puppies who do the jumping. It's disrespectful.

I have been trying this park at various days, various hours to assess it better.

The facilities are subpar compared to other parks (E.g. Butcher). Water fountains are not in working order, no restrooms). No separate areas for large and small dogs. No pooper scoopers and often no bags provided.

What stroke me the most is that this is a very "clickish" park. Newcomers are clearly not welcome. And there are surprisingly very little interaction amongst the dogs.

The park is great with the exception of muscled out guy that is aggressive and rude. I’ve stopped going there just because of him. He does not have a problem grabbing dogs by the neck or being confrontational with anyone at the park.

A small dog section would be great. I actually have had issues at this park on several occasions with greyhounds and huskies being aggressive with my small dog; I have seen other small dogs have the same problems here. I would be able to return if they had a small dog area.

We have been going to this park for just about 3 years now.Totally enjoy the shade and the grass. From what I understand they will be re-doing the park and making it seperate for large and small dogs. I don't see the need for this since there very rarely is any problems with all size dogs together.

"My company installed the unique and innovative grass designed for dogs at that park last year. It is called K9Grass. Please visit K9Grass ... it is not a sports field product typically containing 5-6 lbs of sand and rubber infill, which could hold odor, fecal matter, vomit and urine odors. K9Grass is also made from an antimicrobial yarn, very dense and heavy. ...It is the first park nationwide to use K9Grass. Not all synthetic grass is equal, that is a truly unique and fabulous product." -ForeverLawn West Inc.

Graves dead ends and most people park in the cul-de-sac at the end (behind the Orchard Supply store).  There is parking on the other side of the park as well at the end of Lassen Ave. There are entrances at both ends of the dog park, so it is easily accessible from both Lassen and Graves.  The park is not accessible from Lawrence.  There is a nice brick wall separating the park from the busy Lawrence Expressway; this blocks the site and a lot of the sound of the street inside the park.  Big dogs and small dogs share the enclosure at this park.  This dog park has many large shade trees and seating for people.  It seems that some people donated extra chairs for seating under the trees to add to the picnic table.  This is probably the most shaded dog park in the area.  This dog park was redone in the winter of 2006 with new gravel tracks and synthetic grass.  This is a nice improvement over the dirt or mud.  Other features include a doggy water fountain.  Overall this is a nice park especially with all the big trees and newly redone turf.