Zoning Board Grants Relief For ER Hospital For Pets In Newtown

NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP, PA — The Newtown Township Zoning Hearing Board on Thursday voted to grant zoning relief to a group of veterinarians looking to turn a vacant office building into an emergency hospital for pets.

After listening to plans for the proposed ER for dogs and cats, the zoning board voted to approve a use variance along with parking and loading bay variances for the proposed 25,000 square foot hospital at 10 Friends Lane.

p of local veterinarians to convert the long vacant building in the Newtown Business Commons into an emergency hospital and surgical center f

The zoning relief was needed for a group of local veterinarians to convert the long vacant building in the Newtown Business Commons into an emergency hospital and surgical center for dogs and cats.

Just like a hospital ER, a pet ER would handle emergency situations like accidents, trauma, bleeding, seizures, breathing difficulty, poisoning, and other life-threatening situations.

Land development attorney Ed Murphy said the hospital would operate around the clock seven days a week and would eventually grow to 85 employees spread out over several shifts.

“There will be no boarding, no grooming, no kennel, no outdoor dog run, no outdoor storage or keeping of animals,” said Murphy. “It will be an entirely enclosed, no boarding operation.”

The hospital will service a wide area stretching from Pipersville south to Lower Bucks and adjacent areas of New Jersey and Montgomery County.

It will serve as a hospital for emergency procedures not typically handled in-house by local veterinarians. Animals would be referred to the hospital by local veterinarians. Walk-ins and appointments would also be taken.

The veterinarians said they plan on renovating the first floor into hospital space with plans to eventually expand to the second floor. An interior courtyard would be used as an employee break area.

The veterinarians are hoping to close on the property in March or April and then begin an eight or nine month renovation project with a planned opening date of early 2027.