Design proposals shown for new animal shelter
Post-Tribune
April 18, 2016 - 2:14PM
Porter County officials got a peek at what could be the new animal shelter Monday with a look at the plans offered by three teams involved in the design-build process for the new facility.
Members of the Board of Commissioners and representatives from the animal shelter, animal control and the project's technical review committee heard presentations from Core, Epoc, Millies and Abonmarche; Gairup/M2Ke design; and Larson-Danielson Construction Company Inc. One of the three teams will be selected to take on the project.
The presentations weren't about cost but about the design of the new shelter. Commissioners have set a construction budget of $1.6 million to $2 million for the new facility. Commissioner Laura Blaney, D-South, has said a considerable anonymous donation toward the cost of the shelter would offset the cost.
The new shelter will be located on a 5-acre parcel at 2554 Ind. 49, on county-owned land between the sheriff's department and the Porter County Expo Center which now houses a vacant home and a few outbuildings.
County officials have long discussed a replacement for the current shelter, at 2056 Heavilin Road, because they have said the facility is outdated and too small for the number of animals it serves.
The three priorities for Gairup/M2Ke design would be to create a warm and inviting place, full of natural light and functionally efficient and effective, said David Hill, principal with M2Ke design.
"We want to make it a place people want to go to adopt an animal," he said.
His firm's design would be a cross-shaped structure with natural light for the animal and public spaces. The entrance will have taller elements with space for signs.
"It will be very prominently seen from (Indiana) 49," he said, adding it will have "curb appeal" and be inviting for the public.
The longest portion of the building will run east-west for energy efficiency, and the entire building will have large overhangs to maximize the sun's heat in the winter and minimize it in the summer, and provide coverage for outdoor kennels.
The facility also would have extra-wide corridors in the dog kennel zones and hanging partitions to block the dogs' views of one another and cut down on barking, he said.
In late February, commissioners released a request for proposals to the three teams competing to bid on the project. The RFP specified a facility that was 10,000 to 12,000 square feet, with the ability to expand another 3,000 square feet.
The facility proposed by Gairup/M2Ke design would be around 15,300 square feet.
"I don't think I can get smaller than that and get all the programs" in the facility that officials want, Hill said.
Commissioners will get an update on the animal shelter at their meeting Tuesday and, according to a timeline in the RFP, are expected to award a contract for the new facility at their May 24 meeting. The shelter is expected to be complete by early next year.
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