We Need Your Expertise
Two years ago, a conceptual master plan for Cat Tales captured community imagination and generated significant media attention. The Journal of Business covered it. News outlets featured it. Supporters got excited about the possibilities.
And we’ve been fielding questions ever since: Are you relocating? When? Where?
Here’s the reality check: That master plan, while beautifully designed, focused on a specific property that’s neither available nor suitable for our needs. It was a vision—valuable for sparking conversation, but not a roadmap we can actually follow.
But it did raise the right question: Could relocation ever make sense for Cat Tales?
The answer won’t come from enthusiasm alone. It requires rigorous, systematic evaluation of complex challenges most people never consider:
Regulatory Maze: As a USDA Class C exhibitor, state-licensed trade school, AND Washington Fish & Wildlife rehabilitation partner, we operate under multiple overlapping regulations. Can a new location satisfy all these requirements?
Accreditation Standards: Any new facility should be designed to meet Zoological Association of America (ZAA) accreditation standards—raising the bar for animal welfare, educational programming, and operational excellence.
Zoning Complexity: Wildlife facilities face significant land-use restrictions. What jurisdictions would even permit what we do?
Capital Reality: Beyond land purchase, we’d need construction funds, permit fees, infrastructure development, and operational reserves during transition. Can we realistically raise this capital without compromising current animal care?
Accessibility Imperative: Our current location makes us accessible to students, visitors, and the community. Would relocation maintain this—or isolate us?
Operational Risk: How do we execute a major project without disrupting the 24/7 care that our currently animals require?
These aren’t rhetorical questions. They’re the foundation of a 12-month feasibility study we’re undertaking—before we even look at properties.
This is where your expertise becomes essential.
We’re forming a Relocation Feasibility Committee to conduct this evaluation properly. We need community volunteers with professional knowledge or significant experience in:
- Real estate development and property acquisition
- Construction, site planning, and infrastructure
- Zoning, land use, and permit processes
- Capital campaigns and major donor cultivation
- USDA/wildlife/trade school regulations
- ZAA accreditation standards and facility design
- Community engagement and government relations
- Financial analysis and nonprofit law
- Environmental impact assessment
Even if you can’t serve on the committee, you might know someone who can. Your network matters.
The goal isn’t to plan a move—it’s to make a responsible decision.
Maybe relocation is viable and would transform our ability to serve animals and students. Maybe we’ll discover our resources are better invested enhancing our current facilities.
Either way, we’ll make that decision with data, expertise, and community wisdom—not wishful thinking.
The conceptual master plan gave us inspiration. Your expertise will give us answers.
Because our animals deserve decisions made with both heart and hard evidence.