Contemporary Metal Colors Evoke Warm Atmosphere
The Elk Grove Animal Shelter opened its doors to the community on Saturday, October 12, 2019—7 years after June LaVine realized this vision. June is the founder of the non-profit, Friends of Elk Grove Animal Shelter.
City officials, architects, contractors, and the community came together on this project. Eric Wohle acted as the lead architect while Carolyn Natividad took on the project architect role, both representing LDA Partners Designers and Architects. To achieve the project’s vision, they took a ‘listen, collaborate and create’ approach.
The top priorities on this project included creating a warm atmosphere in which to shelter approximately 65 dogs, 55 cats, and other small animals along with more practical features. Since the facility would require frequent cleaning and washdowns, in addition to the normal wear and tear from the public, metal was an obvious choice to meet the Operations & Maintenance (O&M) needs of the City. This also helps minimize future O&M budget impacts.
![]() Photo Credit: Dale Goff Photography |
![]() Photo Credit: Dale Goff Photography |
When asked about the building materials selection process, Wohle had this to say, “metal siding, roof, and soffits were chosen to add visual interest, durability and for cost-effectiveness from both an environmental and capital cost perspective.” While LEED equivalency was pursued for green building and sustainability, certification was not in the final budget.
“The building is in an industrial part of Elk Grove, so the metal siding was sympathetic to the surrounding neighborhood,” according to Wohle, “but the scale and nature of the siding, roof, and soffits help give the animal shelter a contemporary feel.”
To help convey the warm, fun, and inviting atmosphere, a bright custom yellow “Tuscan Sun” was chosen by a public forum. Tuscan Sun and the contrasting Cool Zinc Gray in AEP Span’s Nu-Wave® Corrugated metal panel was used for the siding. The metal roof was constructed of 18” Design Span® hp with striations in Cool Zinc Gray and the soffits were made from AEP Span’s Prestige Series® 12” full, 24g Cool Zinc Gray. This bright, modern color scheme blended well with the mixed-use of wood and brick to create a dramatic design.
Animal Services Manager, Sarah Humlie said, “It’s a beautiful building that the city will be really proud to have in their backyard.”
![]() Photo Credit: Dale Goff Photography |
![]() Photo Credit: Dale Goff Photography |
The Elk Grove Animal Shelter is approximately 2.80 acres, which includes public parking and service parking lots, outdoor animal yards, kennels, low-cost spay and neuter clinic, and landscape. The facility will also assist the public with licensing, reuniting pets with their owners, and re-homing abandoned animals. At full capacity, the shelter will have approximately 26 employees.

Dale Goff Photography
“Hopefully, we’ll dispel the myth that a shelter is a sad place,” Humlie said. “When you step through those doors … you’re going to be excited about what new pet you’re going to possibly find and take home.”
The myth that shelters are sad places is just that—a myth. We believe they’re full of hope!
AEP Span is proud to help the community house these stray and abandoned pets—hopefully, as a temporary home before they find a ‘forever’ home.
Be sure to visit the Elk Grove Animal Shelter and possibly bring home a new furry friend. The shelter is located at 9150 Union Park Way in Elk Grove and will operate Tuesday through Sunday, noon to 6 p.m.
More about this project:
Architect: Eric Wohle, AIA, LEED – LDA Partners
Project Architect: Carolyn Natividad, AIA, LEED – LDA Partners
General Contractor: Robert E Boyer, Inc.
Customer: Top Built
Photographer: Dale Goff Photography
About LDA Partners – www.ldapartners.com
LDA Partners joins with civic leaders to successfully deliver community development projects. They design economical yet inspiring spaces that meet operational needs while identifying funding sources that support projects in moving forward. Their designs are flexible, sustainable and reduce ongoing maintenance and operational costs. They reflect the culture of the community and create resources that were not previously available and define themselves as interpreters of vision and aspirations.
About AEP Span – www.aepspan.com
AEP Span has been a trusted brand for over 45 years offering high-performance architectural metal profiles for innovative building designs.
As a leader in green building designs, AEP Span exceeds industry standards in testing and sustainability by offering a portfolio of quality metal panels, which have been tested and evaluated by an accredited third party. They were also the first in the single-skin architectural metal panel industry to provide a Product-Specific Type III Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) along with other transparency documents.
AEP Span partners with architects to achieve innovative design solutions.
Sources:
https://www.ldapartners.com/staff-content/2015/3/17/eric-wohle
https://www.ldapartners.com/portfolio-content/elk-grove-animal-shelter
https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article235635292.html
https://www.abc10.com/video/news/local/elk-grove/brand-new-animal-shelter-opens-in-elk-grove/103-ca1011a3-51bd-4c6f-acd3-66041f2c4a5d?jwsource=cl
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_JDghwTkKM
http://www.egcitizen.com/news/designs-of-city-s-million-animal-shelter-unveiled/article_dcc1fc04-1bcf-11e7-a3dc-1792bcb9b38c.html
http://www.egcitizen.com/news/city-animal-shelter-on-track-for-opening-this-summer/article_31832e28-15cc-11e9-9e26-73b031bd727d.html
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