Greenburgh Seeks Ways to Save Pets Alive Shelter

The Greenburgh Town Board has scheduled an emergency meeting tonight to discuss ways to save the Pets Alive animal shelter in Elmsford, which is slated to close in the next few months.

According to Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner, the property the facility sits on was donated for the purpose of being an animal shelter, and he and others want to see it continued to be used in that way.

“Inasmuch as the land was donated for the sole purpose of being used as a no kill animal shelter - I do not believe that Pets Alive should be able to keep the land if they are not going to use the land for a shelter,” he said in a statement.

Pets Alive is closing the location because the building has become unsafe and too expensive to repair and maintain. The group plans to consolidate its operations at its Middletown facility in Orange County, which would mean Pets Alive would no longer have a shelter in Westchester. The exact date of the closing has not been announced, but the group said it expects to stop operations there within the next few months.

“I have asked the Greenburgh Town Attorney to review the deed to determine if the town has any rights since we were heavily involved in helping the shelter get the land donated to them,” Feiner added. “The shelter did not pay for the property. I will also bring this up before the Town Board.”

Feiner said he has been contacted by other nonprofits interested in taking over the Elmsford facility and operating another animal shelter there, but he did not disclose who they are.

The board meeting, which is open to the public, is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. tonight, July 22, in Greenburgh Town Hall.