By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews
WALDPORT – By this time next year a $5 million Lincoln County animal shelter with plenty of room for dogs and cats and where employees can better care for them should be up and operating at the edge of an industrial park in Waldport.
With heavy machinery growling in the background, a phalanx of public officials, volunteers and the president of the Oregon Humane Society staged a ceremonial groundbreaking for the new facility which has been sought after for five years.
Sheriff Curtis Landers, whose department oversees the county’s animal services, called the groundbreaking “a great occasion,” the shelter “a place of safety and care for animals” and an improved resource for dog and cat adoptions and services.
“While it may be modest, the shelter will give animals a second chance,” he said.
The county has been trying since 2019 to find a new home for its shelter after the old one in the center of Newport was forced to close because of toxic levels of mold. Since then, five shelter staff and volunteers have been operating out of a small manufactured home and converted storage containers near the county Commons property.
“It has been a lot of years and a lot of work to get here,” animal shelter manager Sara Wynveen told the gathering of 50 or so dignitaries and animal advocates. “This space will become more than just a building, but a place for other programs to create a compassionate community for all of us.”
The county has $5 million budgeted for the new shelter and has already spent $175,000 on purchasing the two acres on Dahl Avenue in the industrial park, a geotech study of the property, and the architect’s work. The money comes from a state-backed 15-year loan to the county with a 1 percent interest rate.
Initial plans call for a 5,000 square foot main building and parking for 22 vehicles. The building is planned to accommodate five full-time employees, five volunteers at a time, and have a capacity for 24 dogs and up to 60 cats.
It is the first of two phases, although the size and function of the second phase has to be determined, although the county hopes to build a surgical suite for spaying, neutering and other animal care.
The main contractor is DSL Builders of Salem, which has 85 employees and $30 million in annual revenue. It is a well-known commercial contractor on the coast – important for coastal weather — including numerous projects for the Lincoln County School District, Rogue Brewery, the Yaquina Head visitors center, the Newport Armory and construction of the Yachats Rural Fire Protection District’s station.
The county purchased the property in 2023 after struggling to find a place to locate a new shelter. It backed off locating the shelter at the Newport Airport after animal advocacy groups argued the site was too noisy and potentially dangerous. It formed a team to search for and evaluate potential sites, looked at more than 20 properties in Lincoln City, Newport, Toledo, South Beach and Waldport, ran 18 through its evaluation process and agreed the site in Waldport’s largely undeveloped industrial park off Crestline Drive was the best choice.
One of the criteria was that the shelter be located out of the tsunami zone – which limited choices finding suitable land and willing sellers.
Some residents of north Lincoln County have grumbled about the shelter being located so far south, which prompted Rep. David Gomberg, D-Otis, on Wednesday to remind the crowd that it will be incumbent for the county and its animal support groups “to provide services to north county as well.”
Sharon Harmon, president and chief executive officer of the Oregon Humane Society made the trip from Portland to attend the groundbreaking. She praised the location just south of Waldport High School and an Oregon Coast Community College building that might lead to internship possibilities for students.
“This is a big lift,” Harmon said of the new shelter. “Animals don’t always come before other deserving causes. But for every pet on a leash, there’s a human on the other end.”
I’m thankful for the new shelter and that Waldport is the location. My other hope is that at least some jobs are given to local qualifying residents.
This is good news for the county, and especially for the dogs and cats who may be in need of the shelter’s services.
I’d suggest that the county transit agency create a stop at the new shelter as soon as it’s completed & operating, so that people in the county living in Newport, LC, etc, can reach the shelter even if they don’t have a personal motor vehicle or a friend who’s willing & able to give them a ride. Perhaps the county transit agency can even waive the current rule that an non-service animal be in a crate/carrier, so that the owner of a newly adopted dog doesn’t have to purchase an expensive crate as well as pay an adoption fee. At this time, the county Dial-A-Ride website indicates its services are available only in Lincoln City & Newport. Be nice if pet companionship wasn’t available mostly to those who own or can use personal motor vehicles to get to the new animal shelter. The current shelter is more centrally located. It’s fine to relocate the shelter, but it should be possible for everyone who wants and is able to adopt a cat, dog or other animal up for adoption, to be able to get to/from the new shelter.