(Photo from Maricopa County Animal Care and Control) Maricopa County has found a potential replacement for the east animal shelter at Rio Salado and Loop 101, according to a release. Current plans call for a new facility to be built at the county-owned campus at Mesa Drive and Baseline Road. “The new shelter would offer the same services as the Rio Salado location but in a space that would be better for animals. This update comes as Maricopa County continues to consider improvements to the centrally- located shelter near I-17 and Durango. A plan to consolidate all shelter services there was ultimately discarded,” according to the release. Maricopa County Animal Care and Control operates two full-service animal care centers in the Valley, at 2500 S. 27th Ave. in Phoenix and 2630 W. Rio Salado Parkway in Mesa. The animal care centers provide adoption services, dog licensing, microchips, pet surrender, rabies vaccinations and shelters for lost and stray animals. “Our goal has and will always be the care and comfort of our animals within our facility,” Maricopa County Animal Care and Control Executive Director Mary Martin said in the release. “The current east shelter simply does not meet industry standards. A new facility will help keep animals there comfortable, healthy and adoptable and give ample coverage to that community as well,” she said. “We hope to see improvements in our central facility as well so we can continue to see and maintain the more than 95 percent live-release rate we have had for two years,” Ms. Martin said. Operations at both county-owned animal shelters will continue as normal for the time being. The Rio Salado shelter will remain open until the new east shelter is built. “Maricopa County’s East Valley campus offers an ideal location because there’s no land cost and the infrastructure is already there,” Deputy County Manager Reid Spaulding said in the release. “That means a greater percentage of our money can go toward our primary mission of caring for animals and finding more of them permanent homes,” he said. A timeline for the projects has not been determined. Learn more about the shelters at maricopa.gov/shelterplans.