K-9 Spa Plans Withdrawn, But Owner Remains Hopeful

After three hearings on her proposed K-9 Resorts luxury hotel and spa for dogs at the Warren Board of Zoning Adjustment, Natalie Mooney said she could see the direction things were going.

A few weeks later, in the middle of June, she withdrew her application, ending her hopes of converting the former post office building to a cage-free shelter for dogs. While she said she's hopeful she could still open a Warren location for the Fanwood-based chain, she said it would be difficult to find a location further removed from residences than the Washington Valley Road building.

"I love Warren, I think it's a great town," Mooney said. "But I'm very, very gun shy. I'm nervous that the town doesn't want K-9 there."   

Based on the public comments at the zoning board, Mooney is probably right: a steady stream of residents spoke out against the facility, with concerns about the noise of dogs barking that would be coming from the center, environmental concerns about the dogs' urine and feces, and other issues.

"It was very upsetting to hear people say that because that's not the case at all," Mooney said.

Mooney said she wouldn't have had an opportunity to respond to those concerns—which she said were really misconceptions of the facility—until a few more board hearings, with the clock running on a team of professionals.    

Had she been able to respond, she said she would have pointed out the shelter keeps the dogs indoors most of the time, and when outside, would be walked in an enclosed yard with high privacy fencing.

"Dogs will bark when they see something—our proposition was to put up a seven-foot vinyl fence, so they wouldn't see anything and they wouldn't have a reason to bark," she said.

She added the company uses natural products to break down and neutralize dog urine, so it doesn't cause any environmental damage.

But as Mooney noted, the "court of public opinion" was against the proposal, spelling a certain death for the project. She said she still hopes to open a K-9 Resort in the area to meet the needs of the existing clients in the area, but doesn't think it would be possible to find a more suitable location in Warren.

"We would love to be in Warren if there no opposition," she said.