By Gianna Njau
TREMONT, Ill. (25 News) – A new animal control facility opened in Tazewell County Thursday morning, replacing a crowded and aging building with a nearly $4 million center designed to improve care for thousands of animals each year.
The new Tazewell County Animal Control Center sits a short walk from the old facility. The expanded space is just over 10,000 square feet and increases housing capacity to around 142 animals.
Construction began in 2025. Tazewell County Administrator Mindy Darcy said the operation is now coming into full fruition.
“I think it’s a project that was put on the back burner for many years, and we just really needed to get this done at some point in time. Now was the right time,” Darcy said.
The building includes private offices, reception areas, adoption rooms and expanded housing. The facility is designed to better serve animals, staff and future adopters.
Tazewell County Animal Control Director Libby Aeschleman, who has been with the facility for five years, said the need for a new center became clear within her tenure.
“It started as a conversation between me and some board members and just grew from there. The need became very apparent very early in my career here,” Aeschleman said.
The facility, according to Aeschleman, is expected to begin offering veterinary services on-site in early 2028.
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