PENDLETON — The dog days of summer in full swing, and organizers of the Falls Bark Dog Park want local residents to know delays to install a canine haven for four-legged friends should be over soon.

Logan Marshall, a recent Pendleton Heights High School graduate, and a group of 24 other members of the Class of 2018, had hoped to have a dog park up and running in early June. However, they ran into delays obtaining approval from the state to complete the project.

The students, who were part of a senior community service project required to earn a summa cum laude diploma, raised thousands of dollars to install water lines, a fence, park benches and signs in Falls Park, to date Falls Bark Dog Park is not open.

After looking into certification guidelines about permits in flood way areas, park officials realized they needed a special certification from the Department of Natural Resources before they could get the project done.

The dog park is expected to be installed in one of the park’s large, open fields east of the Community Building and on the south side of the creek.

Although the area has not flooded in several decades, the group still needs the proper permit because the dog park will be installed close to the creek.

Park Superintendent Ron Barnhart has been working with the students, helping them identify the best area for the dog park and handling the submission of the permit.

Dog park organizers must provide evidence showing the dog park would not impede the flow of water should the area flood in the future, which is highly unlikely park officials said.

“It’s hard to say because I am not an engineer, but we may need a different fastener to hold the fence to the post so they can break away should debris accumulate,” Barnhart said.

Barnhart has submitted most of the paperwork associated with the project and was finishing up the final piece last week, hoping to get the approval in September.

Pendleton Parks and Recreation Board approved the project last year, when seniors from the Pendleton Heights Class of 2017 came up with the idea.

Students from the Class of 2018 had hoped to complete the effort in the spring. However, the state permitting process has taken longer than expected, Marshall said.

“It’s a bit disappointing because we wanted the dog park to be installed before now,” he said.

The materials to build the dog park have been purchased and contractors are waiting to help build the dog park, while many of the seniors who helped organize the project are heading off to college in coming next few weeks.

“There’s not a lot I’m going to be able to do from Purdue, and that’s frustrating,” Marshall said.

Marshall has asked Barnhart to take over finalizing and finishing up the installation, which Barnhart said he would be happy to do.

Once the permit has been granted, Barnhart will make sure the project is completed, he said.

“We’ll get it done,” Barnhart said.