Town Manager Rick Ledwith said the project is slated to go out to bid this fall.

By Ronni Newton

West Hartford’s existing Animal Control Facility is inadequate, outdated, and out of compliance with state regulations, and plans that have been under discussion for the construction of a brand new, much larger, and state-of-the-art facility are being finalized with the process of soliciting construction bids planned for the fall of 2024.

Over the past several weeks there have been multiple discussions taking place on social media – primarily on West Hartford-related Facebook groups – regarding conditions inside and outside the current Animal Control facility being described as “horrible,” “deplorable” (and worse), and members of the community suggesting ways to ensure that town staff and elected officials are fully aware of their concerns. Suggestions being raised for getting the attention of decision-makers and solving the short- and long-term needs range from getting on the agenda at an upcoming Town Council meeting to protesting, launching a petition campaign, holding a fundraiser, and creating t-shirts with messages about the importance of paying attention to the West Hartford Animal Control Facility and standing up for the animals that do not have their own voices.

In a letter to the editor in June 2024, resident Debbie Sheridan, owner of Debbie’s4Dogs LLC, a certified dog trainer known as an advocate for animals, noted the abysmal conditions of the current facility. She has continued to push for the town to take action without further delay, and many others in the community have indicated they agree and have pledged their support of grassroots efforts. “We can do better. Let’s move the new pound effort to the top – not two or three years from now. C’mon West Hartford,” Sheridan wrote in that letter.

“It really needs to happen yesterday,” Sheridan told We-Ha.com on Monday. “It’s really sad that this is the ‘town that cares’ and the animals are at the bottom.” She said she has spent time at the Animal Control facility when cats have been in crates in the office, and guinea pigs and even a parrot have been in cages on the floor. There’s no space for people to meet with the animals, and the outdoor area has cracked asphalt that dogs have cut their paws on.

A new public Facebook group, “Friends of the West Hartford Pound,” created on Aug. 13, already has 165 members. Its stated mission is “to support the West Hartford Pound. Our current focus is to be the voice for the animals to hold West Hartford accountable for the design and construction of a new pound to replace the aging and unsafe facility currently in use. Once the animals have a safe and comfortable pound, this group can focus on ways to support the pound like adoption events, fundraising for extra support, and other programs to enhance animal welfare.”

Town Manager Rick Ledwith, who has been out of town on vacation, told We-Ha.com that he is aware of the community’s concerns and the urgency of communicating the plans. Bob Palmer, West Hartford’s director of Plant and Facilities Services – whose department is responsible for overseeing construction of the new Animal Control facility – was away on vacation when the most recent flurry of social media activity began, but Ledwith said he has spoken with Palmer, the construction documents are being finalized, and the project will go out to bid this fall.

Ledwith said the goal is to have the bidding process completed and the contractor lined up so that actual work can begin in the next construction season – hopefully in March 2025. The designs that were unveiled in February 2024 are the ones that will be used, but Ledwith said there is still the possibility of slightly shifting the location of the facility, although it will still be at the corner of Brixton Street and Oakwood Avenue.

The need for a new West Hartford Animal Control facility has been talked about for years, and Palmer has regularly been sharing updates on the progress of the project with the Town Council’s Public Works, Facilities, and Sustainability Committee. While initial plans, announced in early 2022, were in the works to rebuild at the current 36 Brixton Street site – although further back from the road – a brand new facility will instead be constructed just up the street at the corner of Brixton Street and Oakwood Avenue, on one of two parcels that the town purchased in the fall of 2022.

The plans that were drawn up a few years ago to rebuild on Brixton Street were used in the design of the current site plan, but the facility will be larger than what would have been built on the existing 36 Brixton Street site.

As Ledwith has stated in his responses to emails from members of the community, “there have been a lot of moving pieces on the Public Works campus that would impact the exact location of the facility which includes our new transfer station, new fuel station and new training tower.” The preferred location for the new Animal Control facility has been 705 Oakwood Avenue – but Ledwith said the need for remediation of environmental hazards in the former Cunningham Supply showroom and warehouse building on that site, which was constructed in 1944, may result in too long a delay. The decision will be announced shortly regarding building at 705 Oakwood, or instead keeping the same design and shifting the site to 12 Brixton Street, right around the corner, on the second of the two properties the town bought in 2022.

“We need to prioritize that and get started right away,” Ledwith told We-Ha.com.

The new building will not, however, be built at the dead end area of Brixton Street which is where the current Animal Control facility is located, Ledwith confirmed to We-Ha.com. Supporters of the current location have expressed concern that the corner of Brixton and Oakwood might be noisier which would be detrimental to the already stressed animals, but it is farther from the train tracks and CTfastrak, and farther away from day-to-day activity at what will be a new transfer station on the Public Works campus.

As for funding the new Animal Control facility, Ledwith said $2 million has already been included in West Hartford’s adopted Capital Improvement Program and those funds are specifically earmarked for this project. Ledwith said the only reason this project would need to be brought back to the Council would be if additional funds are needed.

Sheridan is worried that the project will experience further delays, or an issue with funding, and believes that it would have already been built if the plans drawn up years ago to build a new facility on the current site had been followed. “Nothing’s been done since 1971,” she said.

What will the new Animal Control facility include?

Whether the orientation will be planned for the site at 705 Oakwood Avenue or 12 Brixton Street, the design of the facility will be the same.

The current cinder block Animal Control facility, built in 1971, is roughly 1,000 square feet, and the new structure will be roughly 5,500 square feet.

It will include a formal lobby with ADA-compliant restrooms, a kitchen for preparing food for the animals – which is requirement of the state – and 10 dog kennels with indoor and outdoor space. In addition, there will be three isolation pens for dogs that will include indoor and outdoor areas.

The facility will have a cattery that will include 15-16 cages for housing cats, and there will also be an isolation area for cats. A secure drop-off area will have separate entrances for dogs and cats.

There will be space for proper food storage separate from the kitchen, an office, and plenty of space for general storage.

Animal Control’s current building has heating, but fans are the only source of cooling. The new facility will have a complete HVAC system with air conditioning.

While the intent is not for the animals brought to the facility to remain for a long stay, a very large multipurpose room will allow ample space for the public to meet and interact with animals that become available for adoption.

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