Midcoast Humane is excited to share the launch of a $6 million capital campaign to fund the renovation of a new facility to replace an existing facility at 30 Range Road.

“The pets in our care deserve an up to date, humane, safe facility designed to meet their needs,” said Jess Townsend, Executive Director of Midcoast Humane. “We have been serving Midcoast Maine for over 70 years without meaningful updates to our facilities. The shelter at Range Road is simply no longer adequate. For the health and wellness of the animals in our care, we need to move them to a new facility, one that serves them better.”

The Brunswick Animal Shelter was founded in 1950 and operated in modest accommodations in an old barn not far from where the shelter currently stands at 30 Range Road. The facility has grown in size over the years, but it has had no significant repairs, and does not reflect current housing standards for animal care.

“Over the years we have had to add trailers and sheds to the Range Road property to accommodate the growing number of animals we serve. We’ve reached the point where continuing to operate out of this building is neither practical nor efficient,” stated Bill Muldoon, Board President. “The facility has served us well, but for too long. It is time for the animals of Midcoast Maine to have the shelter they deserve.”

The leadership and board of directors of Midcoast Humane has been considering a move to a new facility for several years. In 2018, Midcoast Humane planned to build a new shelter on a piece of property at the Brunswick Landing, but environmental testing revealed high levels of PFAS in the soil. With the health and wellbeing of the animals in mind, the project was put on hold.

Two years later, Midcoast Humane leadership discovered a piece of property for sale at 5 Industrial Parkway in Brunswick. The building was the right size, located just 1.5 miles from the Range Road shelter, surrounded by green areas for walking dogs, and had all the right features. Midcoast Humane entered into a Purchase and Sale agreement on March 14, 2020, two days before the onset of the pandemic in Maine. Nevertheless, with two, anonymous one million dollar donations and a collection of donations from the previous capital campaign, construction began on the new facility in March of 2021.

“To date, we have raised over $3,300,000 of our $6,000,000 goal,” said Michelle Zichella, Director of Development for Midcoast Humane. “That is an incredible achievement, but ultimately we need help from our friends, neighbors and supporters to reach our goal.”

According to Townsend, the new shelter will dramatically improve the lives of sheltered animals. “We are going from a facility that was built to accommodate a very old-fashioned concept of animal sheltering,” Townsend stated, “to a facility that has been designed not only to maximize operational efficiency, but also to provide the animals in our care with the best conditions possible.”

Specific features of the future shelter include a new HVAC system for optimum climate control and comfort, a modern surgical suite with new equipment to allow medical staff to perform additional procedures in-house, a large parking lot to accommodate more visitors, group cat rooms outfitted with climbing platforms, and spacious dog yards so that dogs can get plenty of exercise.

“Many people think we are affiliated with the Humane Society of the United States, and assume we receive funding from them, but that is not the case,” Zichella stated. She continued, “in reality, we are a small nonprofit organization with an essential mission, hardworking staff, dedicated volunteers, and an incredible amount of responsibility to care for thousands of animals. The bulk of our funding comes from private donors who want to help animals in need.”

Naming opportunities are available at multiple levels, including cat condos, dog runs, the cat wing, and the building itself, and pledges to be paid over the course of five years are welcomed and encouraged. “This year, we are asking our supporters to consider a gift to the capital campaign in addition to their annual gifts that the shelter relies on to operate,” Zichella stated. She continued, “We would love to have more million dollar donors step forward, but in all likelihood, this facility will be built on thousands of smaller donations that come in from our supporters.”

Midcoast Humane operates two campuses and contracts with 39 municipalities from Falmouth to Somerville. The new facility will consolidate the Brunswick shelter and the administrative office, and the sheltering facility in Edgecomb will continue to operate without interruption. “We serve a large population outside of the Brunswick area,” stated Townsend. She continued, “it is critically important that we continue to be able to provide local services to our communities – to be the dependable support system for animals and pet owners in need.” Townsend continued, “The new facility will allow us to serve all of the animals we care for better, no matter where they come from. If we take in a stray cat or dog or a group of animals from a state seizure in Lincoln County, those animals will also benefit from the new facility. The fluidity of our organization allows us to move animals to the site that will be best for them. For some of those animals, that location is Brunswick, and for others it is Edgecomb.”

Midcoast Humane plans to move into the new facility once renovations are complete in the second quarter of 2022. The shelter at 30 Range Road and the administrative office at 190 Pleasant Street will be sold to help cover the cost of renovations. For more information about the capital campaign and to learn how you can help, visit midcoasthumane.org.