The Brief
- Friends of the Pelicans Inc. plans to move into the former Manatee County Animal Services facility in Palmetto after the county approved a lease agreement.
- The nonprofit rescues more than 1,000 injured seabirds each year, many hooked by fishing lines near the Skyway Fishing Pier.
- Leaders say the new campus will provide much-needed medical care for birds in Manatee County and could open within the next year and a half.
PALMETTO, Fla. – As Manatee County Animal Services settles into its new expanded campus in Bradenton, a new chapter begins at its former location in Palmetto.
Friends of the Pelicans Inc., a nonprofit focused on rescuing injured seabirds, is preparing to turn the old county animal services campus into a rehabilitation center for pelicans and other seabirds rescued near the Skyway Fishing Pier and surrounding mangroves.
The backstory:…