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The Official Legal Organ of DeKafb County, GA. Serving East Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chambiee, Clarks ton, Decatur, Doravllle, Dunwoody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Tucker and Stone Mountain.
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SECTION A: VOL 25 NO. 38
MARCH 24-30,2016
500
County breaks ground on new animal shelter
by Andrew Cauthen
andrew@dekalbchamp.com
eKalb
County
is taking
animal care to
a new level with
the construction
of a $8.6 million
animal shelter
in Chambiee.
Animal rights advocates
celebrated as DeKalb
officials broke ground March
16 on the 33,440-square-
foot facility.
“It’s the culmination of
about 10 years of efforts by
grassroots organizations to
get the shelter [built],” said
Greg Myrberg, wearing a
signature red shirt animal
advocates in DeKalb
County have worn to show
solidarity. “Given the track
record, it’s a win for the
county. It’s a good thing to
have happen. We haven’t
treated our animals very
well.”
Interim DeKalb County
CEO Lee May thanked
the “red shirters” who
frequented Board of
Commissioner meetings
to push for improved
conditions for animals in
DeKalb.
“The old facility was old,
smelly [and] leaked water,”
May said. “We know that
that old facility was poorly
designed. It was too small
and it was old and outdated.
The citizen committee
pointed that out day after
day after day.”
The new facility will
have 15 adoption rooms-12
for dogs and three for
cats. It also will have a
DeKalb County officials broke ground on the county’s new $8.6 million animal shelter in Chambiee.
1,300-square-foot clinic
that will provide spay and
neuter services, as well as
a surgery preparation room,
surgery room, lab area,
secure pharmacy storage,
and holding areas for dogs
and cats slated for surgery.
The facility is
approximately 50 percent
larger than the old facility,
May said.
Additionally, the new
facility will have a dog
grooming area, exercise
yard, exercise fields,
adoption halls, separate
lobbies for adoption, reclaim
and intake holding and
exam areas as well as a
multipurpose room.
“It will be designed in a
way that adequately houses
the needs of those animals
that will be coming through
that facility,” May said. “It
will be an open and inviting
place for people and pets
and it will be a place where
you will want to come to
expand your family by
adopting a pet.
“We’re excited about
Several dogs were on hand for the groundbreaking of the county’s
new shelter. Photos by Andrew Cauthen
that and the county has
budgeted millions of dollars
for this effort,” May said.
“We can debate back and
forth about the amount of
money here but we know
that at minimum the county
would have expended no
less than $10 million for the
acquisition of a property,
the design as well as the
construction of this facility.
“It’s not perfect but it’s
night and day in terms of
where we’ve been in the
past,” May said.
Susan Neugent, who
chaired the animal task
force that studied the
existing shelter and the
plight of animals there, said
the “existing shelter was
characterized very harshly
in our task force report.”
Neugent said the new
shelter will be clean, well
See Shelter on Page 5A
Committee
mulling
how to use
proposed
tux revenue
by Andrew Cauthen
andrew@dekalbchamp.com
Meetings are under way
on how to spend hundreds
of millions of dollars from
a tax county officials hope
voters approve in December.
The proposed tax is
a special purpose local
option sales tax (SPLOST)
that would be used to fund
capital projects.
County officials say the
proposed 1 percent SPLOST
would generate more than
$540 million over five years
countywide. Those funds
would be divided among
DeKalb County and its cities
according to population.
In his recent state of
the county address, interim
DeKalb County CEO Lee
May said the SPLOST is
needed because of the
county’s needs for road
See Tax on Page 5A
For an interactive map of
proposed SPLOST projects
in DeKalb County, go to www.
dekalbcountygov.ga/SPLOST
and click on the “Map of
Proposed Projects” link.
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