Even when it was occupied and in use, the former Guilford County Animal Shelter on West Wendover was in pretty bad shape, and now that it has been abandoned since the opening of the brand-new animal shelter, it is in even worse condition.
So, it came as no surprise to anyone that, at a Thursday, Jan.19 meeting of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners, the board voted to declare the property surplus and authorized county staff to begin taking the steps necessary to demolish the structures and put the property up for sale.
The site off of West Wendover is just south of the very busy Bridford Parkway business corridor just south of I-40, so the county expects a lot of interest in the land once it goes on the market.
According to property management staff, an appraisal was conducted in February 2017, and the value came in at $830,000. A more recent appraisal was conducted in February of 2022 and the value was $1.25 million.
The county will not, however, be able to sell the entire site because the deeds states that 1.6 acres of the land will revert back to the Humane Society of the Piedmont. The Humane Society operates next to the old shelter and it granted the shelter use of the 1.6 acres – used largely for parking – as long as the property remained in the hands of the county.
Guilford County will no doubt have to talk to the City of High Point and the City of Greensboro regarding the future sale of the shelter property since – though it’s not widely known – High Point and Greensboro each own a small portion of the land, together totaling 1.14 acres.
Guilford County owns 4.81 acres of the site as well as a 0.4-acre strip of road access.
No one will want that mess.
Donate it to the Humane Society rather than give them any of the CBO money you all fight over at budget time. Just don’t give them money for several years. Where it is sandwiched between shelters, it’s worth far less than what those appraisals state.
Put the council out to pasture.