City of Knoxville officials, PetSafe representatives, community members and some four-legged furry friends will gather for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Knoxville's newest off-leash dog park located at Charter E. Doyle Park at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 17. The park is located at 5100 West Martin Mill Pike in South Knoxville.

The Charter Doyle PetSafe Dog Park is a two-acre section of Knoxville's Charter Doyle Park. Through a $500,000 donation, PetSafe has funded the creation of four off-leash dog parks in Knoxville including this newest location and is developing two more. This is the first off-leash dog park to open in South Knoxville.

In August, Dog Fancy Magazine named Knoxville is the most dog friendly city in the Southeast, earning it the title of "DogTown USA" for the southeast United States. Among the reasons that Knoxville was selected as a dog-friendly city were the community's off-leash dog parks as well as pet-friendly events, dog-friendly restaurant patios and more. Knoxville has grown into one of the best communities for pets thanks in great part to the Most Pet Friendly Community Committee, which includes organizations such as PetSafe, Young-Williams Animal Center, the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, the City of Knoxville and Knox County.

Gathered to celebrate at the groundbreaking will be:

Knoxville Mayor Daniel Brown Randy Boyd, CEO of Radio Systems Corporation, makers of the PetSafe brand Joe Walsh, director, City of Knoxville Parks and Recreation Nick Pavlis, Knoxville City Council, First District Additional community leaders, citizens and canine friends