Animal group to pay costs of pet adoption Woodbridge Animal Group will cover twp. adoption costs all month BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer WOODBRIDGE - Residents can adopt a pet through the township's Animal Control Division for free during the month of March. Mayor John E. McCormac announced last week at the PetSmart store on St. Georges Avenue that the Woodbridge Animal Group [WAG] will pay for the adoption costs for anyone adopting a pet through the Animal Control Division during March as part of the township's Adopt-a-Pet program. "We want to remove as many barriers as possible from the pet adoption process," said McCormac. "Through Adopt-a-Pet Month, we hope township residents will open their hearts, take advantage of the free adoptions, and take a pet home to family and children during March. Pet adoptions can be arranged through the Woodbridge Animal Group or the Woodbridge Township Health Department's Animal Control Division." Pets available for adoption are presented at the Woodbridge PetSmart store on St. Georges Avenue every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Additionally, anyone interested in adopting a pet can contact the Woodbridge Animal Control office Monday through Friday at (732) 855-0666, ext. 5007. With ideas still up in the air for the public animal shelter, the mayor announced in February that he will seek a budget rider to allow for the private donation of funds to assist in the care and housing of abandoned animals. The budgetary rider, for which the Township Council unanimously approved a resolution on March 6, allows the township to establish a bank account for the deposit of privately raised funds dedicated to a specific purpose or goal. Budgetary riders require that such accounts be established for a specific purpose and that the account is public and subject to independent audit. Township officials announced at the Feb. 13 council meeting that they would not pursue the idea to lease space from Dr. Barry Adler, co-owner of the Iselin Veterinary Hospital and staff veterinarian and director of the Woodbridge Veterinary Group, even though they still believe the idea was the best so far for the township. The township was in negotiations with Adler to lease space from him for a public shelter in the basement of the former Adath Israel Synagogue on Route 35, where the local veterinarian plans to relocate his veterinary hospital in the spring. McCormac said the administration and Township Council are continuing to review options for an appropriate and permanent animal shelter. "Various options are being discussed," said McCormac. "There is at least one vacant township building that we are evaluating." The options include but are not limited to: leasing and/or converting a private facility; a potential conversion of existing township facilities into a shelter that meets state, county and municipal codes, regulations, and requirements; and the construction of a new facility from the ground up. The administration, with the assistance of concerned citizens, is also looking to apply for public-private grants that might be available to assist in funding the animal shelter project; however, Township Administrator Robert Landolifi said one of the grants that the administration has looked at did not fit the guidelines for the township to build the shelter. In order to jump-start fundraising efforts and to assist the Woodbridge Animal Group in providing care and shelter to homeless animals, McCormac announced that he would host a spaghetti dinner fundraiser at the Woodbridge Elks 4-8 p.m. April 15. Tickets for the dinner are $7 for adults and $5 for senior residents and children under 12 years old. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact the Woodbridge Health Department at (732) 855-0600, ext. 5007. The township in 2004 estimated that constructing a new shelter would cost $350,000, and later, after extensive in-depth research, decided to allocate approximately $750,000 for the animal shelter, which officials have said would include 18 dog runs, 40 to 50 spaces for cats, temporary cages, and storage facilities. The township underestimated what it would cost to build a new shelter, however. They were forced to reject all bids because they hovered around the $1 million range. Currently the township has approximately $669,000 allocated for the shelter due to costs endured during the bid process in 2006. The current 30-by-40-foot shelter in Sewaren sits near old tank farms and a defunct arsenic-producing chemical plant, and houses cats and dogs in close quarters with one another. The shelter was supposed to be only a temporary fix five years ago, until the township could build a new shelter.