Habersham shelter plan more than doubled in size, but construction path remains unresolved

Habersham County commissioners considered a proposal on March 20, 2023 to more than double the planned size of a county animal shelter, expanding Croft’s design from 7,560 square feet to 15,628 square feet. The county’s current project profile characterizes the change order as approved, but the meeting minutes excerpt documents discussion of the proposal rather than a recorded vote.

The larger concept would move beyond a kennel-focused facility to include spaces for administration, animal intake, public adoptions, isolation and surgery, as well as laundry, staff and public areas, mechanical systems, food preparation, a freezer and a crematory. Those choices could shape both the shelter’s services and the eventual cost of a building project, though approving additional design work would not by itself mean construction was funded or underway.

Croft’s original design fee was listed at $164,900. As county staff brought forward the expanded scope in March 2023, the proposed addition covered 7,978 more square feet and carried an extra $100,276 design fee. The expansion therefore represented a substantial revision to the planning work already contemplated, rather than a separate construction project.

The Public Works director presented the expanded shelter scope to the commission, according to the minutes excerpt. A commissioner raised questions during the discussion, underscoring that the larger design was under scrutiny. Croft was the design firm attached to the proposed change order; the record identifies its proposed fee but does not attribute a public argument from the firm or document how commissioners resolved the questions.

The county profile now describes the Croft change order as approved, while the March 20 minutes excerpt says commissioners considered the proposal and does not state whether they approved it. No vote tally is documented in that excerpt. The record also does not establish that final expanded plans were completed, that the county paid the added design fee, secured project funding, awarded a construction contract or began building the shelter.

The next concrete public step would be a county action connecting the 15,628-square-foot concept to delivery: acceptance of final plans, a funding decision, a construction contract or a project update. Until then, residents cannot determine from this proceeding whether the expanded design moved beyond authorization, how a facility would be financed, or when an expanded county shelter might open.