The Cats in the DPW Garage [VIDEO]

There are a number of reasons Sue Goldblatt, president of Montville Pet Parents, is looking forward to having a new animal shelter.

For one, she will be happy to see cats moved out of a DPW garage.

In the current shelter, cats that are not ready to be adopted are kept in an adjacent DPW garage. The garage gets so hot in the summer animal control officers put ice packs in the cats' bedding, she said.

At 11 a.m. on Wednesday, township officials are due to open bids from contractors to build a new animal shelter at 7 Church Lane, a quick walk around the corner from the current location at 86 River Road.

Goldblatt, a Towaco resident, said she was considering being there when the bids are opened. She has been following the project for years. When the Township Committee in September unanimously approved borrowing $300,000 for the project, Goldblatt was there to be sure it happened. Montville Pet Parents Inc. formed in 2006 to help care for the animals and supplement funding for the town-funded shelter.

Pet Parents has raised $80,000, which it plans to use to install cages for the animals.

Township Administrator Frank Bastone that the project is expected to cost a total of $548,000. The four other towns that use the Montville Animal Shelter—Lincoln Park, Mountain Lakes, Boonton Township and Morristown—are contributing a total of about $100,000 toward its construction, he said.

"The existing facility is in the old municipal garage at back of 86 River Road," Bastone said. "It's a very small facility. ... There's not enough space. It's very old."

Goldblatt said the shelter could be completed about 18 months after a contract is awarded.