Frisco animal services facility cost climbs to $24 million

Frisco is testing how much taxpayers should pay to build a new animal services system of its own, with the latest estimate putting the proposed public-private facility at as much as $24 million. The city says the project would be about 21,000 square feet and could change where lost pets are held, where adoptions happen, and how much strain Frisco leaves on Collin County’s crowded shelter.

City staff and council members revisited the design at a May 19 work session, where they discussed moving ahead with a design team and a construction manager at risk while also revising the funding and operating model. The proposal is still not locked in. Frisco approved a nonbinding letter of intent in November, but no final operating agreement has been signed, and council members are still weighing costs, responsibilities and the building’s layout.

The project has already changed shape several times. Frisco first described it as a nearly 19,000-square-foot, two-story facility on four acres south of PGA Parkway next to the Balcones Recycling facility. By March, city materials showed a roughly 22,500-square-foot one-story building. The latest estimate brought the footprint to about 21,000 square feet and pushed the cost up to $24 million. City staff also said the revised design includes disease-control isolation areas for stray dogs and cats, along with separate laundry and food-preparation areas.

The city has framed the facility as more than a shelter. Planned services include holding kennels, quarantine space, adoption and rescue help, foster placement, behavior and training services, community education, a pet pantry, veterinary care, spay/neuter, microchipping, vaccines, boarding, grooming and daycare. Frisco officials say animal services would still operate out of the Frisco Police Department, while the new building would support reunions with lost pets and care for public safety working dogs. The city has identified Nicole Kohanski as the proposed operator partner and Dr. Markie Schiller as the veterinary tenant partner.

The county backdrop explains why the discussion matters. Collin County’s animal shelter, which opened in September 2006, is about 10,000 square feet with 60 indoor and outdoor kennels and 45 cat cage spaces. County officials said Frisco will no longer be a partner in November 2028, that Frisco represents about 9% to 12% of shelter occupancy, and that Frisco’s FY26 contribution is $651,774. County records also show the shelter was at or over capacity every day in 2025, cat stays rose 116% from 2020 to 2025, dog stays rose 43%, and shelter population growth has been running at 7.8% annually based on 2025 intake.

Collin County commissioners responded by ordering staff on March 23 to revise shelter expansion plans to match Frisco’s intentions and county development plans, then approved an Animal Shelter Committee on April 27. For Frisco, the choice now is not just whether to build a facility. It is whether the city wants to spend millions to create a new civic service model, and how much that choice will relieve pressure on a county shelter already running at the edge.