BURLINGTON – Boone County is fundraising for a new animal shelter to replace its current facility.
The existing facility was built in the 1960s. It has ventilation issues, is not accessible and is located behind a salt dome, making it difficult to find.
The current building is also stressful for the animals, according to Animal Arts, an organization that designs facilities for animals, including animal shelters and veterinary offices.
The new building will be over 16,500 square feet, which is more than double the old space. The shelter, which has been discussed since 2014, will be on 10 acres in Burlington.
The county is working with Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport to find a spot, and they have identified two possible locations, neither of which are being disclosed.
The architect of the shelter is SMP Design of Blue Ash, and the engineer is Woolpert Inc. in Over-the-Rhine.
The new facility will include features such as an animal care clinic and separate sections of the building for intake and outtake, as well as the ability to quarantine sick animals. It will hold about 90 animals, which is the same capacity as the current building.
Colleen Bray, director of Boone County animal care and control, said the shelter is trying to provide a more modern space with a better capacity for the services the current animal shelter is already providing.
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"Our staff had identified the shelter as a barrier to be able to be a leader in the field and care for animals the way we wanted to," said Matthew Webster, assistant county administrator.
The new shelter will be paid for with a combination of public and private funds. Webster said this is the first time the county has tried to pay for a facility in this manner.
The public/private model allows the shelter to add expanded services, such as the animal clinic that will provide services like neutering. The current animal shelter doesn't have a clinic, so pets are sent to Cincinnati for these services.
Webster said the county doesn't expect taxpayers to fund the additional services. The traditional animal shelter services such as animal adoption and holding will be funded with tax money, and the expansion such as the animal care clinic will be funded through donations.
"For the benefit of our public and for the welfare of the animals involved this is a win, win for the taxpayers and for those involved in the community," Judge-executive Gary Moore said.
The shelter is expected to cost $6 million, and the project has already received $5.25 million, including two $1 million donations from residents Ron and Sherri Lou Noel and the Joanie Bernard Foundation in Cincinnati.
Those who wish to donate to the new animal shelter can do so on the Horizon Community Funds of Northern Kentucky's website. Specify it's for the Boone County animal shelter building fund when making the donation.
Boone County hopes to begin construction in summer. Construction is expected to take a year.
The county plans to use the site of the current animal shelter for an expansion of the parks office and maintenance divisions.
Northern Kentucky reporter Rachel Berry can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @racheldberry.
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