City of Vicksburg secures funding for new animal shelter construction

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The City of Vicksburg has taken a significant step towards the construction of a new animal shelter.

On Monday, the Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved borrowing $1.5 million for the project, with a construction budget of $1.26 million. The funds will be used to build the shelter on U.S. 61 South, which is set to replace the existing shelter on Old Mill Road in the Kings community.

The current shelter is over 50 years old and is situated in a flood zone, making it vulnerable to flash flooding. The new shelter will be built on a 14.3-acre tract at 4845 U.S. 61 South, which was donated to the city by the Ernest Thomas family.

The Board approved an agreement with Fordice Construction to build the shelter, with a bid of $1,263,700. The bid includes an extra project to install lights for the shelter’s parking lot, at a cost of $10,800. However, the city has $262,000 available to cover some of the project costs, which means the city may only need to use $1 million of the borrowed funds.

City officials have stated that the additional funds are intended to provide a cushion to cover any unexpected costs that may arise during construction.