Council OKs $60M Bronx pet shelter

The New York City Council voted to approve a massive new $60 million animal shelter in the Bronx Wednesday — putting the city one step closer to having a full-service shelter in every borough.

The 47,000-square-foot Animal Care Center shelter had faced opposition from Bronx elected officials and community members who argued it should be placed elsewhere in the borough and that the Co-op City location would be better served by a community center.

But Councilman Andy King and others came around when the city coupled the project with other benefits for the community — including a new Beacon program at Harry S Truman High School, changes to the shelter to add more community space and educational programs, traffic upgrades, educational partnerships for local students, and animal-assisted therapy for seniors.

“This was one of those challenging things that we in government have to negotiate,” King said. But after negotiations, he said the Bronx “walked away with a victory” — and a way to comply with a law passed last June requiring each borough to have a fully operational animal shelter.

“Our animals will have a place to be taken care of, just like we have hospitals to take care of human beings,” King said. “For many of us our animals, our pets are our best friends, so I think this is one case where we all can walk away with a smile.”

There are full-service city shelters in Manhattan and Brooklyn and Staten Island — so the opening of the Bronx shelter would leave Queens as the only borough without a fullservice facility.