Dog park dedicated to fallen K9 officer Collin Rose Rose Dog Park is at Trumbull and Grand River about two blocks from where Rose was shot.

John Wisely | Detroit Free Press

Wayne State Police Sgt. Collin Rose, a K9 officer, loved his job and loved his dogs.

Both will be remembered at a new dog park named in his honor at Trumbull and Grand River in Detroit's Woodbridge neighborhood. Rose was fatally shot while on patrol a few blocks away on Nov. 23, 2016.

"This is a major positive move as we continue the healing process," Wayne State Police Chief Anthony Holt said Saturday afternoon at a ceremony to formally open the park.

About 100 people, many with their dogs, attended the ceremony, which included an honor guard posting the American and Michigan flags.

"All the residents of Woodbridge were so saddened and shocked when it happened," said Tim Kethman of the Woodbridge Citizens' Council. "The city was building a dog park and we thought, that's perfect, he was a K9 officer."

The park is a fenced plot of grass just north of Scripps Park. Dogs can roam without a leash inside the park.

On a brick wall that separates the park from Scripps Park, is mounted a 370-pound iron medallion that honors Rose. It includes Rose's name, an image of his badge surrounded by roses and an outline of one of his dogs.

It was designed by Kelsey Zsido, 24, a Woodbridge resident who is an art student at the College for Creative Studies. Zsido said the project was near to her heart because by coincidence, her father died the same day as Rose.

Zsido's design was crafted into iron by Amanda Nordin, who said the iron was heated to 2,800 degrees so that it could be poured into a custom made mold. The metal itself has a Detroit history as well, she said.

"It's all recycled material," Nordin said. "All of the iron came from old radiators in the David Whitney building. When they were doing the renovation, they let us have them."

Prosecutors said Rose was alone in the car with his two dogs, Clyde and Wolverine, when he stopped a man on a bicycle near Lincoln and Brainard. Rose was shot in the head and died the next day.

He was 29 and engaged to be married at the time. Rose's fiance, Nikki Salgot, attended the ceremony with Clyde, but she didn't speak.

Raymond Durham of Detroit was charged with first-degree murder for Rose's death, but he twice has been found incompetent to stand trial because of mental illness.

Contact John Wisely: 313-222-6825 or jwisely@freepress.com. On Twitter @jwisely