The City of Porterville will celebrate the grand opening of its new animal shelter in a former Citibank this week. Photo by Tami Hensley

The City of Porterville will celebrate the grand opening of its new animal shelter with a ribbon cutting this week, marking the completion of the highly-anticipated project.

The shelter will replace the current Porterville Animal Shelter, which is located almost 15 miles away, north of Linsday — a nearly 30-minute drive from the city. The new center, located near Downtown Porterville, will ease access to residents.

Located at 185 North D St., the shelter will feature modern amenities that will ease day-to-day operations for staff members, as well as make the shelter more accessible for the public, according to a news release.

 

Formerly a Citibank that closed in March 2015, the building underwent a $7.2 million remodel. The project was designed by Ra-Da Architects and constructed by AMG & Associates Inc.

The new shelter will include meet-and-greet rooms for prospective adopting families, as well as a dog park, sound-resistant rooms aimed at diminishing noise pollution throughout the facility and other amenities around the property and inside the 9,600 square-foot facility.

The City of Porterville will host a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednesday, Aug. 7 to at 9 a.m. to celebrate the event.

Additionally, the City of Porterville’s low-income spay/neuter program was recently restarted by the animal shelter. The program will offer spay/neuter services at discounted rates based on pet weights. Rabies and microchip services will also be offered to all animals for $25. Interested residents are urged to call (559) 562-5947 and leave a message.