Apr 6, 2008 12:59 pm US/Eastern
Plans For A New & Improved Animal Shelter Axed
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
It looks like the puppies and kitties who call the Miami Dade animal shelter home won't be moving to new digs anytime soon.
CBS4 news partners the Miami Herald reports Miami Dade Animal Services have been unable to locate a suitable 5 acre site to build a new shelter. Instead, they plan to add on to their current shelter at Northwest 74th Street and 74th Avenue in Medley.
The four decade old shelter houses admits about a hundred unwanted dogs and cats a day; the 35-thousand square foot building houses on average about 400 animals daily.
During a budget workshop with the county's Health and Public Safety Committee, animal services learned that its current budget of $10.4 million will drop to $10.1 million next year and they will be forced to cut several full time positions.
Animal Service director Dr. Sara Pizano said this year's bad news is a far cry from last year when they were planning to build a brand new $21.3 million dollar state of the art shelter which would have been double the size of their current building. But after an extensive search of the county, only a few spots were suitable and each had their problems. The department eventually did put in a bid on a warehouse complex which would have needed major work, but it came in far below what the owner wanted and the appraised value of the property.
The expansion plans for the current shelter call for temporary walls to replace the shelter's screened west wing and a supplemental air conditioning system to beef up the shelter's current outdated ventilation system.
(© MMIX CBS Television Stations. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald contributed material for this report)
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