Animal Shelter, Inc. Receives Rezoning Approval

In Hart County, the non-profit group Animal Shelter, Inc. is one step closer to building a new shelter.

On Monday, the group received approval from the City of Hartwell to rezone property on Uulyanovsk Road, according to Hartwell City Manager David Aldrich.

The acreage is being donated to Animal Shelter, Inc. by Hartwell business owner Andy Adams.

Last summer Adams said he was willing to donate land to the group plus materials for the shelter.  Animal Shelter, Inc. has been working towards building a shelter for the past several years.  Two years ago, board member Judy Partain went before the Hart County Commission and said they had raised enough money to build a shelter.

Currently, the City of Hartwell and Hart County contract with the Northeast Georgia Animal Shelter in Lavonia for animal intake services.

In an interview Thursday with Animal Shelter, Inc. board chair Gayle Cobb, Cobb said there are no plans for her group to contract with either the county or the city to take in stray or unwanted animals.

“The animals will come from where they always come,” she said. “They come from private citizens who call us for help.”

The group however, will still not take in cats or kittens, according to Cobb once the shelter is built. 

“We rarely get calls from people with cats or kittens, so we are just going to continue to focus on dogs,” she said.

Cobb said while they do have money to begin construction and a design plan, they do not have a timeline or date for construction to begin.

“There are still some details to be worked out,” Cobb said. “I’ve been waiting a long time for this to happen and so I’m used to waiting.

One detail is getting approval for a shelter from the City.  Aldrich said while the rezoning has been approved, the group has not yet  come before the city council to request permission to build.

“I can tell you that the property was rezoned and I do certainly understand that it would be for an animal shelter,” he said Thursday. “However, they haven’t made any other formal application other than for it to be rezoned.”