See inside St. Clair County’s new animal control building in Belleville
As St. Clair County’s animal control building off of Illinois 15 in Belleville nears completion, county officials recently toured the facility and its new features.
Officials estimated the new facility at 1123 Comwest Parkway could open by mid-July. Construction crews are still waiting for some equipment to arrive, including new, larger dog kennels.
Estimates for the price of the building got as high as $16 million because of rising construction costs. But County Buildings Director Jim Brede said the total ultimately was about $10.5 million.
Of that total, $6.9 million will be covered by the county’s share of federal COVID-related relief funds from the American Rescue Plan.
St. Clair County wanted to construct a new building because the existing facility at 1250 S. 11th St. floods during heavy rain. Staff have had to evacuate cats and dogs multiple times.
Municipalities have until the end of 2026 to spend their COVID allocations.
The June 18 tour led by St. Clair County Animal Services Director Ashley Jett included members of the Public Building Commission, the board that manages county-owned properties, including the animal control facility.
Here’s what board members saw and learned during the tour:
The new facility has capacity for about 75 dogs and 100 cats, according to Jett. Public Building Commission member Edmond Brown asked whether that was enough to meet the county’s needs.
“Do we anticipate that this facility is the proper size for the county, to handle the dog population?” Brown asked Jett during the tour.
“It will never be the appropriate size,” Jett said in response. “If we add more kennels, we will fill more kennels. … It’s just the need right now is so large with people not being able to afford their animals, people allowing their animals to run loose.”
St. Clair County animal control takes in strays and animals removed from homes for neglect or abuse and for biting people. But Jett said it is responsible only for animals in the unincorporated areas of the county. She said animals in other municipalities should be addressed by those towns.
The county’s new facility has four wings for large dog kennels. Each kennel will connect through a small saloon-style door to another kennel outside so the dogs also have access to the outdoors.
Staff and volunteers will be able to take dogs to four fenced outdoor play areas on the large property. Officials plan to build a dog walking trail on the property, too.
Once installed, cat kennels will face exterior windows, allowing them to look outside, and cats can roam freely in a designated room that also gives them access to the outdoors through a “catio,” an enclosed cat patio. The facility has two catios.
The facility has separate treatment rooms for cat and dog intake processes on opposite sides of the building that include exam tables, scales and stored animal vaccines.
One of the key changes from the old facility is that the new building will have a veterinarian on staff and a medical suite for surgeries and other emergencies, meaning less moving animals around for their care.
The county’s consultant on the project, Colorado-based company Animal Arts, recommended animal wellness features be included in the design. Among the new features are:
- Kennels arranged so that none of the animals face each other to avoid stress
- Heated floors in kennel areas
- Piped-in music specifically for cats and for dogs
Three large photographs of animals treated by animal control greet visitors entering the lobby. Jett said she plans to hang more photos through the building’s hallways to humanize it; she said staff can tell anyone who asks about each of the animals that have come through their doors.
“It amazes me how much these animals actually have an impact on my staff,” she said. “They know every one of them by name. They know all of their stories, how they came in, where they came from.”
The animals featured in the lobby include Joline, a dog that was returned after adoption but eventually found a home through animal control; Jori, a very sick kitten that staff worked hard to try to nurse back to health; and Princess, a dog that staff rescued after owners abandoned her in a vacant home with no food or water.
Visitors also will see adoptable animals through large glass windows in rooms right off the main lobby.
