County officials gave 3NEWS an exclusive first look inside the new $3 million-dollar center, which they said will improve equipment and capacity for stray animals.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A new chapter is beginning for the Nueces County Animal Care Services department as leaders prepare to open a $3 million-dollar new Animal Care Center in Robstown. County officials said the upgraded facility will expand capacity, improve equipment and provide safer, more humane conditions for stray dogs and cats.

County leaders gave 3NEWS an exclusive first look inside the new center, which Judge Connie Scott called a long-awaited project.

“It’s been in the works for several years,” Scott said, adding that the facility fills a critical need, particularly in rural areas.

Crews are completing final touches on the county’s newest addition, a modernized animal care building intended to replace an aging facility.

“A little trap door that you’ll be able to access,” Commissioner John Marez pointed out during the walkthrough.

Marez also said the new center addresses long-standing challenges.

“Our other facility was well over 40 years old, and so you talk about just disease control with the materials that we have in place is going to be helpful,” Marez said. “To have them in a nicer facility, it’s just better, it’s more humane for the animals. It’s easier for the staff to be able to monitor and control them as well.”

Animal Services Director John Herrera said his team is eager to move into a space with upgraded equipment.

“We’re actually having to fix a lot of stuff that’s breaking over there,” Herrera said.

So what is the center’s capacity?

“We have 32 dog kennels and 22 cat kennels,” Scott said.

Judge Scott added that the long planning process included budget adjustments.

“The last I checked when we were discussing it, it was 2022 and I know I even since I got in here in 2023, we voted to scale it back and we had to value-engineer some of the stuff on the building and stuff to get it within our budget for the county,” Scott said. “We worked as a team. We got it all done, and this is another thing that we’re proud to be unveiling.”

Marez said the new building could also open the door to partnerships with local youth and nonprofits.

“So we’re going to look at potential partnerships with the school district. That would be really good because obviously we don’t have enough staff and it’s always a budget issue and obviously we have a lot more space so this maybe gives them some chance to be working in a real world environment,” Marez said.

County officials said the new animal care center will open its doors on Thursday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony after several years in the works.