Huntington animal shelter may get a new home, courtesy of state grant

Huntington Town Supervisor Chad Lupinacci, seen last year, said he was especially happy about a state grant because the town's previous applications for this funds were not successful. Credit: Barry Sloan
Huntington’s furry residents have more money in the kitty for a new home thanks to a $500,000 state grant.
Huntington Town Supervisor Chad Lupinacci said the town had been awarded a $500,000 New York State Companion Animal Capital Fund Grant program through the state’s Department of Agriculture and Markets. The money will be used for a long-proposed new or improved animal shelter.
“The town of Huntington really does pride itself on the quality of its animal services particularly its high rate of adoption,” Lupinacci said. “We want to build upon that success and this grant will enable us to take a step in that direction.”
Grant funds are available for the costs of capital projects, including construction, renovation, rehabilitation, installation acquisition or expansion of buildings, equipment or facilities necessary for the secure containment, health and adequate care of sheltered dogs and cats.
Lupinacci said he was especially happy because the town’s previous applications for this grant were not successful.
“So in order to better qualify ourselves for the grant this time around we performed a lot of legwork on the legislative side,” Lupinacci said. “For example, there was a creation of a formal intermunicipal agreement with our villages, that was an important part of the equation.”
For years the town has offered animal control services to the town’s incorporated villages: Asharoken, Huntington Bay, Lloyd Harbor and Northport, but it was never in a formal agreement.
“The state wanted to see this memorialized via legislation so we made that a priority and got it done,” Lupinacci said.
He said he and his administration were still deciding whether to build a new shelter in Halesite on Creek Road or to update the current facility on Deposit Road in Northport.
A new shelter has been proposed for a property on Creek Road. In 2017, the Town Board awarded a contract for architectural and engineering services to L.K. McLean Associates PC. in Brookhaven. The design process is proceeding and will determine the actual total construction cost. Lupinacci said a new animal shelter probably would cost about $5 million. Other funding sources for the shelter include bonding.
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