The K9 & Equine Plaza will pay tribute to the horses and K9s who have died while performing their duties as service animals within the Chicago Police Department.

“The horses of CPD’s mounted unit and the dogs that make up the K9 Unit are critical to helping Chicago Police officers deliver on their mission to keep Chicago safe,” said Chicago Police Memorial Foundation executive director Phil Cline. “They help officers with crowd control and serve a critical role in helping officers with drug interdiction and terrorism readiness. It’s only fitting that we pay tribute to equines and dogs who died in service to our city. That’s what the new K9 & Equine Plaza will do.”

The Foundation is making special paver bricks for the K9 & Equine Plaza available for purchase as support. Just 1,000 bricks, in which donors may have their names or the names of a loved one or pet inscribed on them, are available. The cost per brick will be $250.

The new space will be located just north of the water wall at Gold Star Families Memorial and Park just east of Soldier Field. Foundation officials aim to have the plaza fully designed, installed and dedicated in 2023.