Provided that there are no bumps in the road, officials are expecting to have the new animal shelter in Chatham built by late fall of this year.
Marjorie Crew, a co-chair of the Friends of the New Animal Shelter, says plans are moving forward. At this point, a design for the new shelter has been drawn up and a request for proposal (RFP) has been submitted.
"We have the design and it [has] gone out to the public so we're pretty excited about that step," she says.
Crew adds while they have an idea of how much the new facility is going to cost, some fundraising will still need to be done.
"We still have a little bit of fundraising to do ... At this point, we have about $1.5-million and that's where we think we're going to be safely landing," she says.
As for how the new shelter will look, Crew says they're expecting it to be a much larger, state of the art facility.
"It's very modest with a modern look to it," she says. "It's going to be much larger, much cleaner, much brighter, more animal-friendly, and it will also suit the future needs of animal control and animal welfare in Chatham-Kent."
In terms of location, Crew says the new animal shelter will be built on the same property, behind the current shelter on Park Ave. E. By the time the new shelter is built, the old, current building will be turned into a parking lot.
Crews adds that it's exciting to see plans come together.
"We really are appreciative of our community that stepped up," she says. "It's a partnership with the municipality and the community... It's a need -- we need to make sure that we take care of our furry friends in the community."
