It's Happening!!!!!!
Update: November 13, 2006 - Exciting progress is being made both inside and outside as construction continues. Our free roaming cat room (see below), which will accomodate 10-12 adult cats is nearly complete. It's a big, bright room with plenty of windows for the cats to see outside or to check out their prospective new owners in our adoption lobby.
Our dogs have settled happily into their new kennels, where glass block provides natural light and new ventilation and lighting systems have been installed. As you can see below, every dog gets a blanket, or two, to snuggle on each day. Nicky says thank you very much for your donations!
Outside, the siding has been completed and our signs have been installed. The landscaping in the front of the building is being provided by Boy Scouts and more has been completed since the picture below was taken.
We could not have undertaken this complete renovation of our facility without your continued support. Please stop by and visit us any day except Monday from 1PM to 4PM and we'd be glad to take you on tour and show you all the changes in person.
Donations may be mailed to:
JSAC Building Fund
185 Brick Boulevard
Brick, NJ 08723
or made online by clicking here:
Update: August 23, 2006: This is a very exciting time for us as we watch various new areas of the shelter nearing completion. However, in order to keep our operations running smoothly during our busiest time of year, the construction phases have been somewhat altered.
The conversion of our old thrift shop is nearly complete, this area now contains our new examination suite, our cat stray holding area, dog and cat isolation rooms and one meeting room. Our free roaming cat room and adoption lobby are currently being created in our former front lobby area. This free roaming cat room will allow 10-12 cats to enjoy cage-free accommodations.
The final phase will begin shortly and will include a small animal room, dog and cat maternity wards, kitten nook, large dog runs and another meet and greet room.
Update: July 19, 2006: We have moved into our new front lobby and are now using a portion of our new dog runs. Please stop by and take a look at our new facilities when you are in the area.
Building renovations are in high gear and the exterior of the building has undergone an enormous transformation as we have added approximately 4,000 square feet to the facility. As we near completion of Phase I, hoped to be the longest of our four phases of construction, we will be unveiling our new lobby, new Thrift Shop and renovated dog runs.
As you can imagine, it is difficult to maintain operations while such extensive work is done. Our Thrift Shop manager, Carol Foltz, has kept her chin high as she has endured roof leaks, alternate entrances, confused customers and parking limitations. Our kennel group has worked hard to keep the animals away from construction noise and stress, moved supplies and squeezed operations, including the loss of 47 of the dog runs to be renovated at one time, a cost saving necessity. Our office staff has dealt with everything from power outages causing computer crashes to using personal cell phones for animal control police calls while phone systems were offline.
The next phase of construction will include the creation of our free-roaming cat room and small animal room. After that, we will convert the old Thrift Shop into a surgical suite, stray cat holding room, sick-dog ward and sick-cat ward and an examination suite. The final phase will create the "meet-and-greet" rooms, new laundry room, kitten room, wildlife room and whelping areas for cats and dogs that come to us pregnant or with little ones.
When will the entire project be completed? Our best estimate is September 2006. We hope you will stop by and see the exciting progress. The facility will represent best practices in the animal welfare field and it will be gorgeous. Building fund donations are still needed.
Donations may be mailed to:
JSAC Building Fund
185 Brick Boulevard
Brick, NJ 08723
or made online by clicking here: