WARREN — Trumbull County commissioners expect to hire a new county dog warden within the next several weeks, which should enable them to move forward with the long-delayed building of a new dog pound.

Amanda Hebert, a volunteer and advocate for the Trumbull County Dog Pound, during the commissioners workshop on Tuesday sought to nail down the commissioners’ expectations of the dog pound advisory panel created last year.

The panel, which consists of former Trumbull Dog Pound Director Michelle Goss, Jason Cook, founder of The Healthy Hearts and Paws Project, Hebert and others, was seeking information on whether the county is expecting to take out a loan for the building of the next facility or will be looking for private dollars to pay for it.

“If fundraising is expected, what financial commitment is the county prepared to make up front, and is there a max amount the county is willing to contribute?” she said.

Commissioner Tony Bernard said the county will not make any decisions before it hires a new dog warden and a new deputy dog warden.

Goss resigned from her post as Trumbull’s dog warden in December.

“There are many things I could share about my time here, but I want to leave on a positive note,” she wrote in her resignation letter. “I am grateful for the opportunities I’ve had to serve the community, work with dedicated colleagues, and contribute to the mission of this department. I wish the team continued success moving forward.”

Bernard said the next dog warden, like Goss, should be a part of the advisory panel so that person is able to express the concerns of the commissioners to the panel.

Because the advisory panel was expecting to meet in the next week, Hebert suggested its members needed commitments from the county to move forward.

Commissioner Denny Malloy suggested the panel should delay any future meetings until after the county’s dog warden and, perhaps, the deputy dog warden, are selected.

Commissioner Rick Hernandez on Wednesday noted the county interviewed nearly a dozen candidates seeking to become the next dog warden. Several are expected to tour the current facility on Friday.

Bernard and Hernandez said the projected cost of the next dog pound is too high. Based on previously obtained architectural renderings, it could cost between $3.5 million and $4 million.

The two commissioners said the design emphasis should be placed on what is needed inside the building for the care of the animals instead of the exterior aesthetics of the facility.

Architectural drawings were done in 2024 when the pound was expected to be built in Vienna on property donated to the county in 2023 by the Animal Welfare League. AWL’s headquarters is located next to the proposed county dog pound site.

However, last year, Bernard and Hernandez said the county should look at other sites to place the dog pound before a final decision is made on where it should be built.

The commissioners on Wednesday each said they expect decisions to be made before the end of 2026 not only on the location and financing of the dog pound but also on the proposed Trumbull 911 center and the Trumbull coroner’s office.