The former Carroll County Newspaper property on Berryville’s 62 Spur is again home to a print business – but this time it’s pawprints, not newsprint. The 8400 sq. ft. building and its nearly two acres is destined to be the new location of the Good Shepherd Humane Shelter’s Doggie Shop store by the end of this year.
According to Executive Director Cole Wakefield, GSHS first expressed interest in the building in December and entered into a contract earlier this month.
As director of Animal Operations, Wakefield implemented numerous programs and practices during the past few years that led to the shelter’s continued growth and success. He was appointed to the ED position on April 1 and hit the road running with administrative duties and this new project.
Over the next few months, the facility will be renovated to include a spacious main showroom, several smaller display rooms, a couple of offices, an animal food distribution center and even a free-range kitty romper room with a glass wall. Shoppers will be able to watch the felines frolic and can even adopt them at the thrift store location.
“It’s the first time there will be adoptable animals living in the store location. We’re ‘melding the mission,’” Wakefield quipped. “We’re currently pulling together our design team, but the overall store design will be guided by our Retail Manager Janet Chupp. She’s excited about turning the old press room into a sorting and pricing area. It will be great to have extra space for receiving and processing donations. It increases our logistical ability to bring in and distribute furniture and large donations into the community.
“There will be a modern, clean sales floor, lots of furniture – and no more stairs! This will be a significant renovation. Mark Minton, our board vice president, has taken point on the project and we will be pulling together contractors soon so we can get the ball rolling once the paperwork is done. This is a big project.”
The ball is already rolling on pet food delivery. Through a program with online pet food supplier, Chewy, GSHS already distributes pet food to area food banks. But unloading a 20-pallet truck at the shelter took about 8 hours. Happily, the new facility has a loading dock which made it possible for the same amount of food to be offloaded in less than an hour.
“We are looking at additional programs and are optimistic about being able to bring more resources into the area. We are still in preliminary talks with other companies, so no details yet, but stay tuned! The food in these programs is the same food you get at the store. It comes directly from manufacturers, distributors and retailers,” Wakefield said.
“Currently most food distribution is done through our partners like Loaves and Fishes and Flint Street. We don’t have staff at the warehouse and keep a limited stock at the Adoption Center. People are always welcome to call and see what we have available. When the new building opens, we may be able to do more direct [to consumer] distribution but that will be determined later.”
Wakefield also envisions using the property acreage for some type of community function and is considering having vaccine clinics and other pet-related events. “I’m really looking forward to further enlarging our impact in the community,” he said.
For now, the current Berryville store hours will stay the same. The City of Berryville has purchased the building, but the store will remain open until it closes for a week or two to move to the new location later this year. There will likely be a big moving sale beforehand in hopes there will be less to move.
It’s been a while since Cole Wakefield rode the Eureka Springs and North Arkansas railroad past the old Good Shepherd Humane Shelter on 23 N when he was a kid. And all the time since, there has been a “doggie shop” in one location or another, helping support the mission to care for and rehome dogs and cats. And now, just a couple years short of GSHS’s 50th anniversary, the adult Cole will be celebrating that ongoing support with the community when the massive, shiny new Doggie Shop opens its doors.