The Raccoon River Pet Rescue facility will be built over the course of the next year in Perry, and Thursday morning there was a ceremonial kickoff to the project with a groundbreaking event.

Several of the organizers, donors, and contractors were in attendance with gold shovels and hard hats in hand to signal the commencement of construction. The new facility will be built on six acres of land that was donated by Joyce Conklin-VanKirk, which is located at 14360 Ivy Place on the south side of Highway 141 next to the recycling center. The land was recently annexed into the City of Perry, and ground work has already begun at the site. Organizer Joelle Miner says they still have a long way to go to reach their $500,000 goal to pay for the building, and they’ll likely have a fundraising kickoff event in the coming months. Miner adds, barring any delays in construction, the facility should be ready to open by the spring of 2020.

Perry has been without an animal shelter since the Humane Society disbanded last year, and the Raccoon River Pet Rescue organization was formed shortly thereafter to eventually resume operations. To learn more, click the link below to visit Raccoon River Pet Rescue’s Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/Raccoon-River-Pet-Rescue-393926044533523/