Mares Z Doats is rounding up register change through year’s end for Marquette’s $350,000 summer dog park

MARQUETTE — A downtown pet business is asking customers to round up at the register through the end of the year to help pay for a summer off-leash dog park the city has already set land aside for, but which still has to be built.

Mares Z Doats is running the roundup for Marquette Dog Park Friends, a group trying to raise $350,000 to construct the park, WLUC reported Nov. 9. Manager Jessica Fluette told the station the shop sees a lot of dogs come through and supports the plan. The business is also sponsoring the waste-bag dispensers that would go in at the park, she said.

“I think it’s an important part for Marquette to have a dog park,” Fluette told WLUC. “There’s not really a space in the summer for dogs to legally run off-leash, so this would provide that for them.”

The friends group’s website says the city has dedicated nearly 10 acres for a fenced, dogs-only place with wooded trails, an open area for fetch and a small-dog area. The group would build the park; the city would maintain it afterward, the site says. It also says that in warm weather, off-leash dogs are prohibited by law inside the city, which is why the group is pressing for a dedicated summer park.

The same site lists several large donors, including a platinum-level gift from the Katers Foundation and silver-level gifts from the Community Foundation of Marquette County and from named local families. It does not display a current dollar total on the homepage, and this story does not repeat unverified figures for how much of the $350,000 goal is already in hand.

People who want to give directly can do so through the group’s site, marquettedogpark.org, which also lays out named giving levels tied to signage and benches at the park. The Mares Z Doats roundup, according to WLUC, runs through the end of the year.

Sources:
WLUC / Upper Michigan’s Source, “Mares Z Doats raising funds for Marquette dog park,” Nov. 9, 2026 (roundup through year’s end, Fluette quotes, waste-bag sponsorship), https://www.uppermichiganssource.com/2026/11/10/mares-z-doats-raising-funds-marquette-dog-park/
Marquette Dog Park Friends, campaign site, accessed Nov. 10, 2026 ($350,000 goal, nearly 10 acres, city maintenance, off-leash rule, named donors), https://www.marquettedogpark.org/
Image: AI-generated illustration by The Mitten Daily.

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Tags: Marquette · Marquette Dog Park Friends · Mares Z Doats · Dog park · Jessica Fluette · Katers Foundation