At the March 9th meeting, the Blueprint IA Board authorized Blueprint staff to advertise and award a contract for construction services for the Tallahassee-Leon County Animal Service Center Project. This project will renovate the dog kennel and shelter medicine areas, as well as construct a quarantine dog yard with an estimated budget of $3.5 million.
In March 2021, Animal Arts, Inc. completed a needs assessment report for the Animal Service Center. The assessment indicated that upgrades needed to be made within the near term. The report was presented to the IA Board and Blueprint was directed to advance the project within the five-year work program and to present a budget amendment in a December meeting to fund the Project.
This Project will focus on three main issues identified in the need assessment report:
Dog Kennel Renovations
Renovations to the kennels will improve the quality of life to the animals housed in the Animal Service Center and the staff working at the shelter. A new drain system and noise reduction panels will be installed along with other improvements.
Shelter Medicine Suite
Renovations made to the medicine suite will allow the area to be more usable and functional by expanding the clinic area into an adjacent available space and renovating that space to be a contiguous medicine suite.
Quarantine Dog Yards
This improvement to the Animal Service Center includes the creation of two small fenced-in yards outside of the quarantine kennels to provide an exercise space for dogs separated from other dogs. A fabric shade structure and pet-friendly grass will be installed into the space as well as other improvements.
Blueprint staff will issue an invitation for bids and award to the lowest-price responsive bidder.
Blueprint Authorizes $3.5M for Improvements to Animal Service Center added by Tristyn Leigh on
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Ed, Blueprint Money was NEVER supposed to be for ‘economic development’. It was supposed to be for infrastructure. Roads, water, sewer, etc.
It has morphed into this money sucking grifting bureaucracy.
Why are we using Blueprint monies designated for Economic Development to renovate a city/county department facility? Shouldn’t the funds be coming from the City and County’s Capital Improvement funds?
What is the “economic return” on this “investment”. Agree or disagree, I at least understood the economic return argument with respect to the BP funds given to FAMU, TCC, and FSU. How does this “investment” benefit the city and county economically? As I stated several times during the FAMU, TCC, and FSU debate… the Blueprint governance needs to be thoroughly re-evaluated at the highest degree of transparency and public input.
Will we soon be using BP funds to buy snacks for the City Commission?
No Tax For Snacks!
Well, it won’t really matter because it will get washed away in the flood from the Ghazvinis filling in a pond and clearing on Thomasville Road. Where will the water go now? (It will go to Weelaunee).
Did the city illegally grant a permit to developers who contribute generously to elected officials campaigns for this or is the expertise at the city not there anymore to know that this was wrong?
The city spokesperson should have ran out of the building screaming to shut this down before further damage can be done.
The Tallahassee Democrat brought this to the attention of the public and not a moment too soon, good for them!
All I can say is if this isn’t stopped you better stock up on your sandbags because the floods are coming.
You haven’t even put it out for Bid yet and you just said what you have approved to the Improvements. You pretty much did this Ass Backwards, now every Bid will be $3.5 Million so, I will Bid $3,499,999. When do I get the Check?
$3.5M for Improvements? You should be able to build another Center for that kind of Money.
I am an animal supporter. I give to the Animal Shelter and ASF.
This is dumb. Blueprint was not supposed to be about the animal shelter or Office of Economic Vitality, or FSU boosters.
Speaking of OEV and FSU boosters…is there a Blueprint Citizens Board member who is on the Tallahassee Quarterback club executive clique and has a spouse at OEV? Just wondering.