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Islip Town’s antiquated animal shelter in Bay Shore is going to be replaced by a brand-new facility in Central Islip using nearly $1 million in state grant money.
The town plans to break ground on the new shelter this spring, and is looking to complete the construction by the end of 2019, according to officials.
The two big grant awards, about $500,000 each, were announced jointly Friday outside Islip Town Hall by state Senator Phil Boyle and Town Supervisor Angie Carpenter.
Boyle said the funding “will allow for the better care of companion shelter animals, including dogs and cats, and provide more resources for those in our communities looking to continue the work of animal advocacy, care and adoptions.”
The first grant was awarded to the town through the New York State and Municipal Facilities Program (SAM) Capital Funding.
Boyle helped secure that grant last year, town officials said.
The second grant for $498,200 came through the newly created Companion Animal Capital Fund, a statewide fund created last year by legislation sponsored by Boyle.
The Companion Animal Capital Fund is the first state-funded program in the U.S. to support needed improvements at animal shelters, officials said..
This fund provides humane societies, nonprofits and municipal shelters with grants for capital projects through a competitive application process.
The 2018 state budget included $5 million for the creation of a Companion Animal Capital Fund, with the first recipients — the Town of Islip being one — announced this month.
“We are grateful to Senator Boyle for advocating for the town, as well as for the health, safety and welfare of the animals in our shelter,” said Carpenter. “It is very reassuring that the animals will receive quality car in a nurturing, state-of-the-art environment until they find their forever home.”
The Town of Islip is planning to build the 19,000-square-foot shelter on a site adjacent to the town’s Department of Public Works facility in Central Islip.
The Bay Shore shelter, which is over 54 years old, would be shut down.
Photo: Cody gets a bath outside the town’s animal shelter in Bay Shore in 2016. File photo/Tiffany Rivera.
