South Orange to Host Town Meeting: What Should Village Do With JAC Building?

South Orange municipal officials will host a public meeting on Wednesday, June 17, to discuss the fate of the former Jersey Animal Coalition shelter building on Walton Avenue.

Town officials will discuss whether to continue using the building for animal control and shelter or seek proposals from private entities for adaptive reusue of the municipally owned property.

The meeting is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Baird Center, 5 Mead St.

South Orange’s decision may have an impact on neighboring Maplewood, according to report in The Village Green, which stated that Village Trustee Howard Levison had spoken to Maplewood Deputy Mayor Kathleen Leventhal about South Orange’s plan for the building.

The report stated:

“Maplewood is having problems with sheltering,” said Levison, referring to that town’s current contract with the Associated Humane Society, which officials have indicated is a temporary solution to its animal control needs.

According to an email from the Jersey Animal Coalition, almost a million dollars has been raised by the South Orange community in support of a no-kill shelter in the area.

The shelter closed in 2014, after the township issued a quarantine for more than 50 health code violations.