Pope Memorial SPCA to build new training, education center across from current facility

  • The site where the new Pope Memorial Humane Center will be built across the street from present Silk Farm Road SPCA building. GEOFF FORESTER/ Monitor staff

  • The site where the new Pope Memorial Humane Center will be built across the street from present Silk Farm Road SPCA building. GEOFF FORESTER—Monitor staff

Monitor staff
Published: 11/25/2022 2:00:23 PM
Modified: 11/25/2022 2:00:13 PM

The Pope Memorial SPCA is expanding its facilities across the street to include a training and education center that is expected to open by the spring. 

Due to overcrowding and lack of space for programs, executive director Heather Faria decided it was best to build a 1,970 square-foot building across the street from the current facility on Silk Farm Road to create an additional office area for current employees, more room for children’s camps, a training facility for dog handlers and an education center for staff. 

“The current shelter was overcrowded with a multitude of projects that we offer and we found ourselves competing for space,” she said. “When we had the opportunity to acquire land, we decided to construct a new building to dedicate our efforts to those [projects].”

A foundation for the new structure was recently poured and site operations manager Peter Johnson of Cobb Hill Construction expects exterior construction and framing to be complete by the new year. Through the winter and early spring, Johnson and the construction team will work on interior finishes to be complete by the spring. 

The timing is right for Faria.

“For us, the busiest time of the year is late spring through late fall and we should have the building open starting in 2023 to accommodate all of these programs,” Faria said. 

The building will cost almost $1 million, Faria said. Some of the funding was acquired through private donors and grants but the Pope Memorial SPCA of Concord-Merrimack County is still fundraising for the project. 

“We do plan to support local pet owners, humane education programs, camps for children, volunteer trainings and orientations,” Faria said. “We’re hopeful the facility will be attractive enough and large enough for outside organizations to rent it as well.”


Jamie Costa

Jamie Costa joined the Monitor in September 2022 as the city reporter covering all things Concord, from crime and law enforcement to City Council and county budgeting. She graduated from Roger Williams University (RWU) in 2018 with a dual degree in journalism and Spanish. While at RWU, Costa covered the 2016 presidential election and studied abroad in both Chile and the Dominican Republic where she reported on social justice and reported on local campus news for the university newspaper, The Hawks' Herald. Her work has also appeared in The *Enterprise *papers and the *Cortland Standard *and surrounding Central New York publications. Costa was born and raised on Cape Cod and has a love for all things outdoors, especially with her dog.

Stay informed with our free email updates
Concord Monitor Daily Headlines
Concord Monitor Breaking News
Concord Monitor Dining & Entertainment
Concord Monitor Report For America Education
Concord Monitor Report For America Health
Concord Monitor Real Estate
Concord Monitor Sports
Concord Monitor Suncook Valley
Concord Monitor Contests & Promotions
Concord Monitor Weekly Most Popular
Concord Monitor Granite Geek
Concord Monitor Monitor Marquee
Concord Monitor Hopkinton
Concord Monitor Politics
Concord Monitor MY CONCORD
Concord Monitor Franklin
 


Concord Monitor Office

1 Monitor Drive
Concord,NH 03301
603-224-5301

 

© 2021 Concord Monitor
Terms & Conditions - Privacy Policy

Customer Service


Social Media

News

View All Sections

Part of the Newspapers of New England Family