South Orange, New Jersey: Local officials are once again seeking new use for a former animal shelter.
The Township of South Orange Village has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for the former Jersey Animal Coalition (JAC) shelter, located between Farrell Field and the South Orange Department of Public Works facility at 298 Walton Avenue, near the Maplewood border. The request states that the Village "is accepting proposals for the lease and occupancy of property".
Proposals are expected to include "adaptive re-use of the building" while "preserving and utilizing existing structure and the creation of a use and occupancy that is in scale and compatible with the surrounding neighborhood and the ongoing Department of Public Works operations on the same site". Submissions are due by Friday, October 14.
JAC opened an animal center in the Village-owned building in 2005 to serve South Orange and Maplewood, and it remained open until March of 2014, when a joint health inspection by the South Orange and New Jersey Departments of Health led to the shelter's closure for alleged health code violations. After JAC sued the Village and several of its agencies and employees in July, 2014, a New Jersey Superior Court judge ordered that the shelter be allowed to reopen. As part of an agreement with the Village, JAC left the shelter in November, 2014. Most recently, Run Jump Lift has operated a CrossFit studio in the building.
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