ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando’s adoptable animals are one step closer to having a new home.

Nearly three and a half years since a fire destroyed the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando, the organization is finally seeing progress on their new and improved building.

Several years ago, the Pet Alliance lost its home after a fire destroyed their building.

On Sept. 15, 2021, the blaze decimated the shelter and clinic on Conroy Road. According to officials, 71 cats and dogs were rescued, but smoke from the fire killed 17 cats.

“I do remember driving down John Young Parkway and seeing the smoke and then I realized, ‘Oh, this is really bad,’” said Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando Executive Director Steve Bardy. "This is not just a little fire. It's really bad. And then, obviously pulled up and, you know, immediately recognized life is just changed for what we do, you know, overnight."

For the last several years, Bardy and his team have been working in different buildings like their temporary cat shelter downtown, while planning for their new beginning. He has been reviewing blueprints for their brand new facility. While it will be about the same size, he explains it is more efficient with room for growth and has a larger medical space.

“Any kind of kennel cough, anything that is contagious will be kind of isolated,” Bardy said in 2023.

Back then, they were still in permitting, hoping to break ground in January 2024 at the site located at 4000 block of South John Young Parkway in Orlando.

Now, he explained that the process took longer than they thought, with costs of the project also rising over the last several years. The project broke ground in November 2024 and is expected to be completed by early 2026.

While the project was originally planned to cost $15 million, now it’s up to nearly $18 million. Bardy said donations are funding 100% of the project.

“That certainly is frustrating, but like I said, we're not immune to that,” said Bardy. “Everyone in the world has experienced inflation and the price of things going up, so it only makes sense that we would too.”

But now, Bardy said they finally have permits in hand for these plans he has been reviewing for years. 

“I’ve been looking at this for a long time,” Bardy said of the new 25,000-square-foot shelter. “So, actually seeing dirt move is more exciting than seeing this.”

And that is exactly what he goes to see when he leaves the building. Checking in on construction, he sees the dirt foundation actively being laid.

It’s exciting for Bardy, who is now noticing progress from day to day. It’s a far cry from what the property looked like when he visited back in 2023. Now, he can actually see where the building is going to be.

“Definitely elevates the spirit,” said Bardy.

Bardy said he believes this progress will help with their new public fundraising campaign, which he hopes will help them raise the last $4 million needed for the project.

“You know, it's like, we've got something we can say, 'Look, we're building,' because a lot of people want to wait and they're like, 'Is it really going to happen?'” said Bardy. “You know, now we can say, 'Look, it's happening.'”

He expects plumbing and electrical to go in the next six months and walls to go up in May. All steps that put them closer to being able to help more animals again.

“We adopt out probably 3,000 fewer animals a year because we don't have the Orlando facility,” said Bardy. “So, we're just not able to bring in as many. Therefore, if you don't bring in as many, you can't adopt out as many. There are a lot of things we just have not been able to do because of size and scale, and this, you know, ramps up that scale again, and we're really looking forward to that.”

Bardy has his sights set on next February, when he hopes to finally open their doors and start the Pet Alliance's next chapter.

“And we'll all take a deep collective deep breath, like ‘Yay, we did it,’” said Bardy.

Anyone looking for more information on the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando, or the fundraising drive for the new shelter, can visit the organization's website.