Groundbreaking for St. Joseph Animal Shelter to get underway
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- After a decade long discussion, a project to relocate the St. Joseph Animal Shelter is set to begin this month.
In a press release, the City of St. Joseph confirmed a ceremony will be held at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, June 17, at the site area of the $5 million project at 3409 S. Belt Highway.
St. Joseph Mayor John Josendale, Animal Services staff and volunteers will be in attendance. Members of the public are welcome.
The project is supported by $3.4 million in Capital Improvement Program funds and $1.6 million raised by the Friends of the Animal Shelter.
Ellison-Auxier Architects provided design services for the new facility, which utilizes an existing city-owned building on the property that will be significantly expanded with new construction. E.L. Crawford is the construction contractor for the project.
The plan for the new shelter includes an increase from the the current 8,000-square-foot facility as the new location is set have 13,000 square feet of space. It will also feature separate holding spaces for cats and dogs, an infirmary, a designated intake spot and additional parking spaces for visitors.
"We're really excited about the space and having flex areas for the animals," Animal Service manager Holly Bowie said. "It will increase the health of our animals because we'll be able to separate sick animals from healthy ones.
Bowie said the new shelter will help with, not only having more space for animals, but space for community engagement.
"Right now, we just don't have the ability to do that," said Bowie. "The visibility of the location is really exciting for us. We're hoping that we can engage the community more and have more visitors at the shelter."
Public services, including adoption processing, at the current animal shelter location will not be available on June 17, so staff can attend the groundbreaking. However, priority field service complaints will be answered.
If weather conditions become an issue, the ceremony will be moved inside the existing building on the site.
The project is slated to be completed by June 2026.
