Local officials say they’re moving forward with Habersham County’s long-awaited plans for a new animal shelter.
Addressing a shelter volunteer at Tuesday night’s county commission meeting, Commission Chair Ty Akins said, “I don’t think there is anything delaying it at this point. It’s just a long process. It’s going to be fully funded using SPLOST dollars.”
Akins’ comments followed an impassioned plea for progress from Katherine Warwick during the commission’s Jan. 16 meeting.
Last year, Warwick launched an online petition pushing for the county to act. She has again turned to social media to advocate for a new shelter, starting an online discussion group on Facebook. The page, Expand Habersham Animal Shelter Budget Now, prompted many questions about the hold-up on the project, which voters approved in 2020 with SPLOST VII.
‘Biggest eyesore’ and ‘biggest need’
Warwick said since she launched the petition last September, close to 1,300 people have signed it. Based on comments she’s received, she said she felt compelled to get an update from commissioners and find out what’s delaying it. She raised concerns about serious overcrowding and the conditions at the shelter.
“Have you been in the animal shelter recently?” Warwick asked commissioners. “How overcrowded it is and the smells and what the employees have to go through?”
Commissioner Dustin Mealor explained that, due to the elevated construction costs over the last year or two, they can’t fund everything in the SPLOST projects. But he added, “To me, the animal shelter, that’s probably the biggest eyesore and the biggest need in the community.”
Habersham County Manager Alicia Vaughn acknowledged the challenges at the animal shelter.
“It will be challenging, let’s be honest. It’s going to be tough,” she said.
It’s been said it could take another year and a half before the new shelter is built.
“What happens during that time?” Warwick asked.
Vaughn responded, “We will continue to work with [Habersham County Animal Control Director] Madi [Nix] and help her through the next 18 months, or however long it is before we have that new facility. We are committed to build that facility, and we have the funds to do it.”
Getting started
The county blamed previous delays on the projected $1 million price tag for grading the original site and, as Mealor pointed out, rising construction costs. The county then had to seek out another location for the shelter, eventually settling on a tract of county-owned land behind South Habersham Middle School off Old Athens Highway.
Habersham Finance Director Tim Sims says the county is finishing up the request for proposals (RFP) for a project manager to oversee the animal shelter project. The RFP should be advertised in the next four to six weeks, he said.
Once the county hires a project manager, construction can begin on the new facility.
