ASHLAND — The Ashland County Dog Shelter is not for sale.
County commissioners on Thursday approved a contract with Coldwell Banker Ward Real Estate to advertise property located at 1740 Baney Road as available for sale or lease.
That first word — sale — raised some concerns among county residents when the board’s agenda was posted to Facebook on Wednesday morning. But commissioners said the board has no intention to sell the property.
About 3,600 square feet of frontage was included in the construction of the shelter with the intention of lease availability. This space is what the real estate agency has been contracted to seek a tenant for.
The contract states that Coldwell Banker Ward Real Estate is the county’s exclusive agent to pursue leasing the property beginning Friday through Aug. 31, 2027.
The listed lease price in the contract is $1 per square foot, per month, pending negotiation.
“This is just (for) the front section of the dog shelter,” Commissioner Denny Bittle said.
Commissioner Jim Justice doubled down on Bittle’s comments.
“It is just for the lease of the front of the building,” Justice said. “We’ve had other things that people have talked about going in there, wanting to go in there, and it just never worked out, so we’re going to get a realtor involved.
“The whole idea of that front piece (of the building) was to have somebody that would pay the lease, to help pay back on the building and then that money go towards the shelter as income and help the shelter,” he said.
“That was the (original) designation, the whole hope that we had. Hopefully this (contract) will help us move forward,” Justice said.
Since the dog shelter opened along Baney Road around September 2023, Bittle said the goal has been to land a dog- or animal-related business — like a veterinarian or pet store — in the space which has been left vacant.
After nearly three years of independently searching for a tenant, Bittle said it was time to bring in some help.
“We decided it was time to (put it out) for lease and get something in there,” he said.
Below is a copy of the contract, approved Thursday, between Coldwell Banker Ward Real Estate and the Ashland County Board of Commissioners. The story continues below.
3,600-square-foot space still needs work
Bittle said the 3,600-square-foot space the county hopes to lease at the front of the shelter has always been viewed as an opportunity to help finance the $3 million shelter.
The vacant space has a separate entrance and utilities from the dog shelter, he said. It was designed to split in half — into two 1,800-square-foot spaces — should two tenants be interested.
There are two doors, one on the right, the other on the left, when you walk in the doors at the front of the building. Bittle said the design would also accommodate restrooms in both spaces.
“It’s pretty flexible. We’ve designed it that way,” he said. “HVAC could be separate. Water, sewer, electric and gas is all separate. They have their own meters.”
“We think at some point it will be very productive, whatever goes in there, and financially it will be a great thing for the dog shelter for expenses to help long term,” Bittle said.
The shelter runs at a deficit, Justice said, explaining that leasing the space would be a useful funding mechanism.
However, the space will need some investment before a potential tenant can move in — whether on the county’s dime or through a lease agreement with a tenant, he said.
“It’s going to cost us quite a bit of money to get it up. It only has a dirt floor right now,” Justice said. “We’re going to have to do some (work) or work out a lease deal of some sort, which is Denny’s forte, he does that a lot more than I do.
“We’re really hoping that it helps take care of the deficit at some point.”
The board said it still hopes any future tenants are animal-related businesses.
