After three floods and two fires, Ayla’s Acres Animal Rescue readies to construct long-planned animal shelter and education center
ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — An animal rescue program has big plans. Ayla’s Acres Animal Rescue has been trying to build a first of its kind animal resource center in St. Johns County for years, but tragedy and disasters have gotten in the way.
Now, the group is moving forward with construction of the facility.
Earlier this month, Executive Director Fran Charleson rolled out blue prints and schematics of the facility for First Coast News viewers. Â She has had a vision for an animal resource center in St. Johns County for nine years.
Currently, Ayla's Acres does not have a shelter or facility. It simply places animals with foster homes until they're adopted out, but this 10,000 square foot building would change things.
Not immediately, but we are going to be building a feral cat area that will hold about 40 feral cats,” Charleson said. “This will be part of our trap neuter and release work that we do.”
She added, “We're going to have seminars for adults and field trips for kids.”
The ground breaking will take place Saturday, May 30, at 10 a.m. on the corner of County Road 208 and 13A, near Pacetti Road.
It's taken nine years to get this far because of tragedies.
At least three hurricanes flooded the Ayla’s Acres thrift store in St. Augustine. The thrift store is the organization’s primary money maker.
And then two fires ravaged the group's property in the panhandle that housed cats, dogs, and farm animals. Some of the animals died in the fires.Â
Charleson somberly noted, “I don't want any more animals dying from fire. I can't tell you how horrific that was.”
So this new facility will have extensive safety measures in place
“We're going to have sprinkler systems, fire protection, a fire hydrant 1,000 feet away from the caretaker house.”
Charleson said the need for this kind of animal shelter and education center is needed more now than it was nine years ago.
“The need has grown exponentially because of all he growth in the area and because St. Johns County does not have a formal trap/neuter/release program. So (the county) has relied on all of these rescues, including us to take care of that.”
Ayla's Acres is still fundraising and will build the facility in phases.
