On the Way to the Airport, Drop Off Your Pet

AMERICAN Pet Resorts will soon offer Houston pets a chance to enjoy their own vacations while their human "parents" travel out of Bush Intercontinental Airport.

A Pet Paradise Resort & Day Spa is planned in the Interwood mixed-use business park developed by Wolff Cos. The privately owned company, based in Jacksonville, Fla., has five locations and plans to open five more near major airports in the U.S.

"We're expanding our airport concept, and Houston embarks about six times more people than we do in Jacksonville," said Fred Goldsmith, president of American Pet Resorts. "The service that we offer allows the owner to drop off or pick up their pet 24 hours a day, seven days a week."

The company hopes to capture the attention of the 20 million people who pass through Bush Intercontinental each year. The site is at the southeast corner of John F. Kennedy Boulevard and Aldine Bender Road. Interwood is home to about a dozen tenants geared mostly toward the airport, including FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service.

The resort will be on 2.3 acres and contain about 14,000 square feet. It will initially have 125 suites for dogs and 25 kitty condos with the potential to add another 65 canine suites. The facility will feature a swimming pool for dogs and synthetic grass in the courtyard so there is no worry of pesticides, the company said. Canine guests will have their own 5-by-8-feet suites with rubber flooring. Each suite is attached to its own outside patio so dogs can come and go as they please.

Jim Patterson of Coldwell Banker Commercial United Realtors represented American Pet Resorts in the acquisition. David Hightower of Wolff Cos. represented his firm.

The deal brings the first pet resort to a Wolff Cos. development, but diversity in the types of business is not new. For example, Hormel Foods formerly operated a processing plant next to high-end office space in Wolff's Park 10 project in West Houston. Deed restrictions, architectural controls and heavy landscaping allow different companies to coexist well in a business park setting, the company said.

Construction is expected to begin in the next couple of weeks, with opening targeted for the summer. The firm has four locations in Florida and one in New Orleans.

Prices have not been set but typically are around $30 per day for dogs and $20 for cats. Day care will also be offered at a lower price.

Miss your pooch? Why not spy on him?

"We've got Web cameras too," Goldsmith said. "If you sign on, you'll be able to see the dogs in the pool."

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