For months, construction noises sounded from the site at 60 West Industrial Drive as workers from the city of Fulton and volunteers built what was once a dream - a new animal shelter. On Friday, the dream was realized as Mayor LeRoy Benton and donors to the animal shelter, Fulton residents Sam Grabb and Sue Lippincott, cut a gold ribbon to officially open the shelter.
The reality of the project, which had a groundbreaking ceremony on March 24, 2014, became more evident Saturday as cats meowed, dogs barked and people chatted inside the new animal shelter during an open house. A free adoption offering attracted crowds to the facility, including the Whisler family of Holts Summit.
Courtney Whisler, 7, said she spotted her new furry friend, a tan-coated, blue-eyed kitten, immediately.
"I walked in and I saw it and wanted it," she said. "I was like, "Oh, that's mine.'"
That same feeling is one Animal Control Supervisor Tina Barnes hopes more people have at the new Sam and Daisy Grabb Animal Shelter, a building that is a stark contrast from the previous one at 611 East 8th Street. Because the building is bright and welcoming, Barnes said, she is optimistic more people will feel welcome inside its walls than those of the old facility - the old city pool that was meant to be a temporary site during the 1990s. She added more visitors, hopefully, will lead to more adoptions.
"(The new animal shelter) is very, very exciting," Barnes said. "I'm tickled pink to walk in here every day and just know that the community at a whole is going to enjoy this building. It's inviting, it's fresh, and I'm so excited to come here."
The new shelter not only allows more working space for the staff, but also its animals with upgraded kennels and cages. There are three rooms for dogs - quarantine, holding and adopting - and two for cats. Barnes said she has 32 dog pens, compared to 10 inside and 10 outside at the old shelter, and has room for about 30 cats. Before, she could only house 10.
"It's a huge difference," Barnes said.
Each room has a drainage system and sink for cleaning purposes. There's enough room to wash the animals, and staff has a separate break room. Adopters can familiarize themselves with their potential pets in the Edward Jones Bonding Room, which is full of toys for play time. The room is separate from the commotion of the other animals, allowing a person and an animal to focus on each other.
"It's a nice quiet room to go in and play with the animal," Barnes said.
The first cat room visible when walking into the facility was named after Lewis Beatty, a retired electrical engineer from the Ameren nuclear plant who volunteered for the shelter project. Fulton Mayor LeRoy Benton gave Beatty, his friend, special thanks during the grand opening ceremony. The two have worked together on habitat projects in the past.
"I'm really excited to see it completed," Beatty said. "I know it's something they've needed for a long time. I know when they started the fundraising for it several years ago it was exciting to see the prospect of something to replace the temporary pool building."
Benton said Beatty and other volunteers, including councilmen Richard Vaughn who helped with plumbing needs and Lowe Cannell who helped with the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, made the project possible. Each city department, he said, contributed to the new animal shelter completion in some way.
Offenders in the Fulton Reception and Diagnostic Center (FRDC) work release program also played a vital role in fruition of the new animal shelter. City Administrator Bill Johnson said there were up to four offenders working at once, but the number fluctuated. The work release program has partnered with the city of Fulton for about 10 years, and Benton said the animal shelter crew, made up of low-security offenders who complete a rigorous screening process, endeared themselves to the project.
"I think the project kind of got in their blood too," Benton said.
While some gave their time and skills, others donated funding to the $285,000 project. Benton recognized the two largest donors, Fulton residents Sam Grabb, Jr. and Sue Lippincott, on Friday. Grabb, 86, the largest contributor, said he gave $42,000 from the his parents' estate, therefore naming the building after them.
Sam and Daisy Grabb married in 1926 and moved to a farm in Williamsburg in the early 1950s. They had three children, who grew up with animals. Throughout his life, Grabb estimated he has owned between 50-100 dogs of all different breeds, including a golden retriever, chihuahua, shih tzu and terriers. It was common, Grabb said, for him to take in stray animals and all of his pets have come from shelters.
Grabb said he decided to contribute to the animal shelter project simply because it was something the city needed.
"The animals have a good home now," Grabb said. "That's what it amounts to."