Frisco’s proposed animal facility could cost up to $24M amid county shelter discussions

Plans are changing slightly for Frisco’s proposed public-private animal facility.

At a May 19 work session, Frisco City Council and city staff discussed updated plans for the proposed 21,000-square-foot animal services facility, which city officials said could cost up to $24 million.

What’s happening?

Frisco City Council approved signing a letter of intent for the project in November, but the city has not finalized an agreement as officials continue working through operational details, costs and facility design. Council previously received a presentation about the project in March.

Council members generally supported moving forward with hiring a design team and construction manager at risk, as well as shifting the project’s funding and operational model.

Ken Schmidt, Frisco director of special projects, said costs for the proposed project are now expected to range between $18 million-$24 million, adding that it will likely be closer to the later figure. The facility was initially estimated to cost $12.8 million, per previous reporting.

“To get closer to that $18 million, we probably have to really sharpen our pencils as it relates to scope and quality of finish,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt said costs for the facility increased due to the larger size of the facility, rapid cost escalation, evolving design assumptions and a limited number of comparable projects in the region.

Zooming out

Plans for the proposed facility could also be impacted by the city's relationship with the Collin County Animal Shelter.

Frisco’s Animal Services division currently takes animals to the Collin County shelter, which is based in McKinney. The proposed new facility was initially planned to act as a holding facility before animals are taken to the county shelter, with varying levels of time they would be held.

However, Schmidt said because the county is looking to "sever the relationship" it has with Frisco, the services provided to Frisco by the county shelter could instead be provided by the potential city facility under the current proposal.

The city’s contract with the county shelter has been listed on council’s executive session agendas for several meetings since March, but no action has been taken on the item. Schmidt said the city is discussing a possible extension on the current agreement with the county while the city works to build their own facility.

“If [an extension] doesn’t work out with the county, we have other conversations,” Schmidt said.

Council member Laura Rummel referred to “Collin County trying to kick [Frisco] out” of the county animal shelter and said the city is now having to plan to potentially take on all shelter services.

“Recently, the Collin County Commissioners Court discussed its intent to not renew its shelter service agreement with the city of Frisco, which would cause that service to end in November 2028,” the city’s website states. “Staff is evaluating the impact of this direction and the city's options to address it.”

Mayor Jeff Cheney said in March that prior to moving forward with the Frisco shelter plans, the relationship with the county would “need to be resolved.”

“If it’s less than what we’re paying for Collin County right now, [the potential new facility] is an improved level of city service, especially by having something local,” Rummel said. “As this has evolved and changed, I think now that we’re having to take on everything, we’re doing it in the most efficient way possible.”

Community Impact reached out to Collin County but did not receive a response by press time.

Several council members raised the possibility of creating a regional animal facility for Frisco and surrounding communities, such as Prosper and Celina.

“If the council wants us to consider becoming a regional facility, we would need to go back and change many things,” Schmidt said.

Breaking it down

The project was initially proposed as a cash-funded investment through the Frisco Community Development Corp., which will pay an initial $12.8 million for the site and associated facility development costs. Under the updated proposal, Schmidt said staff is recommending a combination of cash and debt funding to avoid affecting existing CDC projects.

“We do still recommend CDC funding for this project,” Schmidt said. “However, we do want to diversify how.”

Schmidt said city staff are still recommending a privately operated facility rather than a city-run model because of the lower operating cost.

Meeting documents note that using a private operator is estimated to cost between $550,000-$650,000 annually, while using public city employees would cost upward of $950,000 per year.

Several private partners are expected to be involved with the facility, including Nicole Kohanski, founder of Wiggle Butt Academy, who was mentioned in the November letter of intent as the potential operator for the Frisco facility.

The facility is projected to have about 10-12 full-time employees, Schmidt said.

According to meeting documents, the updated operating funding model would include three main parts:

• Service funding: reimbursed cost of labor, reimbursed cost of expended supplies/veterinary care and vaccines
• Facility operations and maintenance: operator pro rata share, city pro rata share
• Reserve funding (capital + care): capital reserve, donations

To reduce costs for the facility, city officials are looking at potentially relocating the proposed facility site from the intersection of Preston Road and PGA Parkway to the southwest corner of Gateway Drive and PGA Parkway. Schmidt said the site off Gateway Drive presents fewer topography challenges for construction than the site off Preston Road.

He added that city officials may consider alternative construction options, such as pre-engineered metal buildings.

Schmidt said the city is also looking at ways to increase revenue for the shelter, including sponsorships and donations, as well as potential impound, adoption and license fees.

One more thing

Additional information about the proposed facility can be found on the city’s website.