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Animals, staff, volunteers get new shelter

Increased construction costs boost price tag for WAG facility by $135,000

For a moment at Monday’s council meeting it looked as though the plans for Whistler’s new animal shelter were going back to the drawing board.

But despite calls from Councillors Kristi Wells and Nick Davies to delay the project for a further review, council finally approved the development permit for the new Whistler Animals Galore shelter.

"We’re so excited and relieved," said Carol Coffey, director of the animal shelter.

"It’s been such a long road."

Though the animals and WAG staff will likely be in the current drafty shelter for the first part of the coming winter, just knowing that their brand new home will be clean and warm and ready in the new year should get them through the first chilly months, she said.

"Just knowing that it’s happening now and that we just have to tough it out a little bit longer, that’s I think all we need to feel better about everything," said Coffey.

The new 2,500 square foot shelter will be tucked on a small plot of land in front of the bottle depot and recycling facility on Nesters Road.

The land, which is part of the municipality’s Public Works Yard, is already zoned for kennel use.

While the plot of land on the south-east corner is small, the shelter will be a quantum leap above the current rundown facilities in the day skier parking lots with its rickety walls and cramped quarters.

"The timing and the critical need for this shelter is now," said Councillor Marianne Wade, who pushed to get the development permit approved.

At Monday’s meeting however Councillor Wells expressed concern that the municipality wasn’t maximizing the best use of the land at the Public Works Yard.

She put forward an idea at the meeting to have staff examine the possibility of rearranging the entire site, including the bottle depot and the recycling facilities, to better accommodate all the uses on that land.

She said that this comprehensive look at the site could open up more areas and better utilize the space. This would be a prudent exercise she said in light of the ever-expanding recycling facilities.

Davies liked her idea.

"We’re spending taxpayers money here," he said, adding that council has an obligation to take a look at the site as a whole and bring the report back for consideration in a few weeks.

"The consistent theme has been that this site is too small (for the shelter)."

But the majority of council could not be swayed.

Wade said while there is a larger planning question about the future expansion of the bottle depot, a delay to develop an overall plan for that area could jeopardize the safety and well-being of the animals in the meantime.

Mayor Hugh O’Reilly pointed out that future growth in the community would likely take place in the south end of town and asking residents to drive north to the bottle depot might not be a sustainable option.

Eventually the municipality will have to help out the depot and commit to a second site, he said.

In light of these arguments Davies changed his mind and voted in favour of the development permit.

Wells was the lone councillor to vote against the shelter.

It wasn’t concerns about the site alone that raised red flags for her, rather it was the cost of the project.

Three years ago the project was budgeted for $450,000. This figure was based on an estimate and not on a program or a design.

At Monday’s meeting Parks Planner Kevin McFarland asked council for a $135,000 boost to the budget to complete the project, bringing the total project costs to roughly $580,000 or $230 per square foot.

Wells, however, said she did not feel that the municipality has a lot of extra money right now.

The request for a $135,000 budget increase and the absence of an agreement from WAG about future operating costs made her wary of supporting the project. Though she admits Whistler needs a new animal shelter, the numbers just didn’t make sense for her to support this particular shelter.

This is consistent with her initial concerns in 2003 about building the shelter.

When the project was first presented last year Wells called the $450,000 budget generous because the shelter was going on municipal land, which was essentially free.

At that time she said:

"I want to be comfortable that we can reduce that budget," she said, adding that 2004 was going to be a "tight budgeting year."

But the proposed building has few frills explained McFarland.

It’s made of concrete block, wood and metal.

In addition a local construction company, Innovation Building Group, is donating all project management costs for free. This represents a significant cost savings; in the realm of 10 per cent.

Innovation partner Ned Johnson was key to getting the company involved with the new WAG shelter when it looked like the project would be stalled.

"We really respect what WAG is doing and what they continue to try to do and we understand that it’s an uphill battle," he said.

In addition he said the project costs are reasonable for a commercial building in Whistler.

"At $230 a square foot it may sound like a lot of bells and whistles but it really is a bare bones building which is really focused on making the best environment for all the animals that are going to be living there," said Johnson.

"We’re not doing anything extravagant by any means."

In addition he said, since the 2001 budget, construction costs have risen by eight per cent. That’s a modest estimate he added.

With that increase factored into the cost, the project in 2004 dollars is more than $566,000.

Wade said the number was close enough for her to support the budget increase and the total project cost of $580,000.

She also said this is a learning lesson for council and staff to factor in construction escalation costs to future projects so that the right numbers get into the budget.

The building will have components of a green building, including a sod roof to reduce storm water runoff and control temperature fluctuations in the kennel and the use of local materials to build the shelter.

In order to get certified as a green LEED building however, the municipality would need to find another $20,000 to $30,000.

"We don’t need LEED certification to build a green building," said Councillor Gord McKeever.

"That’s just proof."

Originally the building was to have broken ground by the spring with a six-month construction window.

Now Johnson is hoping to have the animals in the new shelter by February.