Case Study:
Cedar Bend Humane Society

Place. Educate. Teach. Shelter.

The Cedar Bend Humane Society (CBHS) serves animals from Cedar Falls, Waterloo, and the surrounding area in Iowa. CBHS handles close to 4,000 homeless animals annually that come as strays, unwanted, sick, injured, neglected and abandoned.

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All the while, CBHS remains passionate about four key areas:

• placing animals in lifelong loving homes

• educating on the issues of humane care

• teaching responsible pet ownership

• sheltering the stray, neglected, and unwanted

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Their supportive and animal-loving community is always willing to step up and help animals through services like Lost & Found, Pet Wellness Clinics, Adoptions, and End of Life Services.

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Kristy Gardner serves and the Executive Director the CBHS and finds the impact that CBHS makes on the community is very rewarding. "The favorite thing about my job is being able to make a difference in the lives of people and animals," says Kristy.

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Affordable Solutions For Humane Societies

In 2009, Kristy worked with the Design Learned animal care experts and building engineers to provide both expert witness services and remediation engineering related to their then newly constructed adoption center.

 

“Design Learned found a working solution that was affordable and provided us expert witness services,” Kristy shares. She and the CBHS team remembered the impact of having the Design Learned team of building experts in their corner and on their side through the entire legal process as a resource.

 

“One of the things I really appreciate about Design Learned is that they really listen and evaluate accordingly. They help us meet goals while adhering to a budget,” Kristy shares.

 

Animal Care Building Experts in Your Corner

 

The Design Learned team of animal care experts and building engineers understand the unique complexities of designing a state-of-the-art humane society. And, their clients understand the importance of partnering with a design firm that offers this expertise along with professional project management services along the journey.

 

Kristy continues, “Scott's evaluation and his statements really made me realize how important it is to have an expert from day one of planning. As a non-profit we are always looking for ways to reduce costs or get a service for a bargain. In our industry this may mean cutting quality, which in the long run ends up costing us more money and sometimes the lives of the animals we care for. We do not want to make the same mistakes with a new facility.”

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Expanding Shelter Capacity By Fivefold

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Create a State-of-the-Art Humane Society

 

Kristy and the CBHS team were at a crossroads with their facility in 2022. To continue living into their mission to Place. Educate. Teach. Shelter., they needed to expand their animal capacity fivefold. Having direct experience working with the Design Learned team in the past, Kristy and the board knew Design Learned had the skill and knowledge to lead CBHS through its expansion journey.

 

Kristy shares, “Our goal was to create a state-of-the-art Humane Society that would meet the daily needs of operating an animal holding facility and a veterinary treatment center. It is no easy task to meet the requirements of building a facility that handles a large number of animals as well as all of the diseases and challenges that come along with keeping both animals and people safe and content. We knew that Design Learned would strive to meet all of those standards.”

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Every Step of the Process is Exciting

Kristy shares, “Every step of this process is exciting but at the same time causes anxiety. We know what we want in the end, but we do not necessarily know how to get there. More importantly we recognize we do not have the expertise to be able to avoid pitfalls or challenges that come with this process. Throughout the entire process, starting with the needs assessment all the way through the project management services, Design Learned is working as our advocate from start to finish. It is a huge relief to know they will be there to navigate through any problem or issue, and they make sure all other entities working on our project are held accountable.”

 

Start with the Basics

 

Scott traveled to Iowa to conduct a Site Visit and complete the needs assessment. The needs assessment is an important piece as it is the basis of information for the remainder of the project. It analyzes the issues, weaknesses, strengths, and needs of the shelter in the context of its specific community, both now and in the future.

 

From there, the Design Learned team created a program, floor plan options, and an opinion of probable construction cost for Kristy and the CBHS team. The Design Learned team created visualizations of the building design and operations through floor plan options and renderings. The opinion of probable construction cost is invaluable as it serves as a budgeting tool for the overall project, and it provides insight into ‘how much’ fundraising is needed to move forward fairly early in the overall project.

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The Prime Design Firm and Project Manager

 

As the prime design firm, Design Learned identified a design team for this project. The team consisted of in-house team members and sub-consultants, including...

 

• Architect

 

• Civil engineer

 

• Construction manager

 

• Mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, noise control engineers

 

• Interior planning professionals

 

As the project manager and prime design firm, the Design Learned team handled the research, selection, and coordination of all the project sub-consultants. They also created the project package that CBHS submitted to gain Planning & Zoning approval.

 

Gain Approval from Planning & Zoning

 

CBHS submitted the preliminary project package to their local Planning & Zoning officials for approval. Scott was available to answer any animal care specific questions that the Planning & Zoning officials had, whether it be regarding dog noise outside, odor control, or addressing utility impacts from the new shelter. Scott is even available to attend this type of meeting in person if needed. Kristy shared, “Design Learned seems just as excited about our project as we do. They were willing to speak at the planning and zoning meeting, which tipped the scale in our favor.”

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Supporting Fundraising Campaigns

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Telling the Story of the Facility

 

Once the project was approved by Planning & Zoning, the CBHS team was ready to
launch their fundraising campaign for this facility expansion. As with many humane
societies and non-profit organizations, CBHS relies heavily on donations from
supporters. The Design Learned team understands the importance of telling the story
of the facility and how the facility will positively impact the lives of animals. Design
Learned is an expert source of providing assets, resources, and expertise that is
critical for successful fundraising efforts.

 

The Design Learned folks can assist fundraising in many ways which include:

 

• Providing floor plan renderings

• Providing exterior renderings

• Creating a breakout of rooms and their potential monetary value based on the
  budgeted construction cost

• Authoring narrative information regarding the specialized finishes as well as
  mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and noise control systems and why they are
  necessary

• Availability for in-person and virtual donor discussion support

• Discussions with your selected fundraising consultant about the project

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Design Learned Advantage

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Nothing Short of Excellent

 

“My experience working with Design Learned has been nothing short of excellent.
This is a huge project that comes with a large price tag but will also benefit the
community. Design Learned understands the scope of this project and their focus is
on quality and longevity but at the same time being cognizant of expenditures,”
shares Kristy.

 

When an animal shelter works with the Design Learned team, they not only receive
advice from animal care experts and engineering solutions from experienced
professionals but also designs focused on positively impacting animals.

 

Notable aspects of this CBHS building project include, Design Learned’s

 

• Unique ability to renovate a 20-year-old facility and incorporate an addition in a
  way that creates the experience of a new facility as opposed to an add-on

 

• Expert understanding of how to handle complex building systems to fit within the
  constraints of the site

 

• Expert understanding of how a shelter’s unique operations have a profound effect
  on the floor plan and how to accommodate those requirements while balancing
  the needs of disease, odor, and noise control that affect the floor plan as well

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Achieve Our Dreams and Goals

Kristy shares, “We feel fortunate to have Design Learned at the helm of our project.
This facility is imperative to the work we do for the homeless animals. Scott and
Hannah have an excellent grasp on shelter operations and animal care. They have
been able to navigate challenges and offer alternative options to meet our specific
needs. We feel confident in their ability to help us achieve our dreams and goals all
the while making sure we end up with a superior product that will benefit the
community and support our mission of animal welfare.”