Lawrence Humane Society plans for construction of new animal shelter

photo by: Nick Krug

Two sedated brothers, James, left, and Sirius, lie on a preparation table as clinic manager Suzie Morado readies them to be neutered on Friday, Aug. 12, 2016 at the Lawrence Humane Society, 1805 E. 19th St. Humane Society officials are planning to construct a new facility on the current property.

The Lawrence Humane Society is making plans to construct a new facility that shelter leaders say will decrease euthanasia rates for the thousands of dogs, cats and small mammals it takes in annually.

“Very simply, to me, we are going to save more lives,” said Humane Society Executive Director Kate Meghji.

City officials are beginning to discuss how local taxpayers might be able to help pay for part of the estimated $7.5 million facility. City staff members are getting closer to recommending that the city provide $2.5 million of funding in future years.

photo by: Nick Krug

Kate Meghji

“We thought it was only appropriate that we ask the city to contribute since we provide a service to the city that they’re legally required to do by impounding stray animals,” Meghji said.

Expanded facility

The new facility will have an expanded medical clinic and better isolation rooms for sick animals, allowing the shelter to more effectively treat animals and stop diseases from spreading. Meghji said both those aspects will help improve the shelter’s “live-release rate,” which is currently 86 percent.

“I would say we’re doing a really good job considering the facility that we have, and I can’t wait to see what we could do with a facility that really works,” Meghji said.

The approximately $7.5-million facility would be about 22,000 square feet, and would be built on the Humane Society’s current site in eastern Lawrence.

Each year, the shelter takes in about 3,500 dogs, cats, and small mammals — typically rabbits, ferrets and rats, Meghji said. Though the new shelter will be about 3,000 square feet larger than the current one, Meghji said it will have about the same housing capacity. The difference will come from the improved facility, which Meghji said will allow animals to be treated and moved through the shelter more quickly.

photo by: Nick Krug

Humane Society officials are planning on constructing their new facility in the location just north of the existing building where the fenced-in play and exercise areas for the dogs are located. The play and exercise areas will be relocated on the property.

“It will provide better care,” Meghji said. “What you see in shelters that are up to modern standards is that they don’t get sick as frequently and they move through the facility faster, so we will actually be able to help more animals.”

Once the new facility is complete, the old building will be torn down. That vacated space will likely be converted into a fenced dog park for use by both the shelter and the community, Meghji said. The original plans for the shelter called for a $5-million renovation of the current facility, which is 20 years old. After more review, Meghji said the animal shelter opted for all-new construction.

“We spent the last year-plus evaluating both renovation and a new building to try to determine what would fit the needs of our community best, and ultimately we feel that the new building would allow us to do the right thing for the community long-term,” Meghji said.

She said the building will also include better community education facilities to teach people about caring for their pets, which should help lower turnover rates.

“One of the very simple things we put in this building is a large multipurpose room where we can have training classes or education classes, or invite elementary schools in to learn about compassion and how to properly care for animals,” Meghji said.

Funding plans

The Humane Society will be raising about $5 million for the project, and Meghji said close to $2 million has already been raised through private donations and public grants. Because about half of the Humane Society’s intake is from stray animals picked up within city limits, Meghji said she has been consulting city staff about the project, and the shelter will be seeking $2.5 million of city support.

Part of the city’s five-year capital improvement plan includes a potential construction partnership with the shelter for the project. The $2.5 million has only been discussed at the city staff level at this point, and the city would function as a financing conduit for the humane society, as opposed to having any ownership of the building, said City Finance Director Bryan Kidney.

“It’s still pretty preliminary to actually talk about what that structure actually looks like,” Kidney said. “There definitely wouldn’t be any budget impact to the city for many years.”

Kidney noted he thought the construction partnership was important to include in the city’s long-range plans, and the capital improvement plan lists the $2.5 million under the year 2020.

“To me it’s important to put as much on there that could develop over the next couple years so we can be talking about it way before important decisions need to be made on the funding side of things,” Kidney said.

Kidney said the City Commission will discuss the 2017-2021 capital improvement plan in more detail, including the Humane Society project, at its work session in November.

To plan and design the facility, the shelter has contracted with Lawrence’s Sabatini Architects and Design Learned, which specializes in building system designs for the animal care industry. Meghji said once renderings are final in the fall, the Humane Society will bring a formal request for funding to the City Commission.