Priceless Pet Rescue — which oversees the adoption of animals surrendered or rescued in Costa Mesa and recently became the city’s veterinary services provider — got the green light last week to open a new animal hospital and vet clinic off Harbor Boulevard.
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission approved a conditional use permit for a 6,248-square-foot commercial building at 1520 Ponderosa St. that will allow the nonprofit organization to take in and treat wards brought in by animal control officers employed by the city’s police department.
Once site improvements are made, the new facility will be able to kennel and serve up to 50 animals at a time and will include a quarantine area, full-service veterinary suite, a 900-square-foot artificially turfed play area and 27 parking spaces.
Lisa Price is the Priceless Pets executive director and runs the Orphanage, a pet adoption center in Costa Mesa. Located at 1536 Newport Blvd., the center will remain open as the nonprofit builds a vet clinic off Harbor Boulevard.
(File Photo)
Members of the public will have access to the building and may redeem their lost/stray animals and provide for the safe surrender of animals at the no-kill shelter.
A small staff will work daily, from 10 a.m to 6 p.m., but the site will be staffed to allow animal services officers to drop off strays on a 24/7 basis. All public animal adoptions, however, will continue to take place at Priceless Pets’ adoption center, at 1536 Newport Blvd.
“This proposal will allow for the community to also receive services, not just animal control,” Priceless Pets Executive Director Lisa Price told commissioners during a Nov. 12 meeting.
“We want to be able to serve the community that cannot afford that care, as well as making sure all animals are spayed and neutered at a lower cost or at a rate your community can afford — that’s basically what this particular facility will be able to offer.”
The nonprofit took over veterinary services on a temporary basis last December, after city leaders received notice a longstanding provider, Newport Center Animal Hospital, planned to terminate its $240,000 annual contract.
Officials in April inked a five-year contract with Priceless Pets, which also runs an adoption center in Claremont and operates a vet clinic and adoption center in Chino Hills and City of Industry.
Under that agreement, which took effect July 1, the organization was to receive $480,000 annually and was obligated to find a permanent residence in Costa Mesa.
Planning Commission Chair Adam Ereth, expressing his personal support for the organization, shared that he adopted a dog, Willie Nelson, from Priceless Pets.
“Expanding this operation to include everything that’s proposed here in this project is rather exciting,” he said. “Priceless Pets has proven their worth, time and time again, to this community, so I’m enthusiastically supportive of this project.”
Price said she was eager to get the ball rolling on the new facility.
“I feel like it’s been a long time, so I really am excited to be able to get this project up,” she said. “Hopefully, it will be a shelter that everyone can be proud of.”