Good morning, Hopkinton! Welcome to the daily update we call Hopkinton Today — a quick recap of yesterday’s news, highlights of what’s on tap, and a photo of the day.

Baypath close to funding shelter, breaking ground

A rendering provided by Baypath Humane Society shows the proposed entrance of its new building.

Baypath Humane Society is $1.5 million away from achieving full funding for a new animal shelter in Hopkinton.

In a press release, the nonprofit announced it had broken past $5 million in fundraising for its Building Baypath’s Future campaign as of March. This puts the shelter’s $6.5 million goal closer in reach as it continues to engage the town during its development process.

Along with the fundraising milestone, the Board of Appeals recently voted to grant Baypath a special permit that would designate 66 Fruit Street in Hopkinton for use as an animal shelter.

“With this approval secured, Baypath is preparing to break ground by late summer, with construction expected to take 12 months to complete,” the press release states.

Baypath entered a public funding phase in September of last year after raising $4 million. The process toward the new shelter began in 2015, and Baypath secured the Fruit Street property in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the project’s timeline.

The completed shelter will be 2,000 square feet — about four times larger than Baypath’s existing structure at 500 Legacy Farms North Road. The new building will include a community room, an advanced medical space to handle diagnostics and spay-and-neuter activities, and updated housing facilities.

The shelter will help the nonprofit to “be a critical resource for this region of Massachusetts, ensuring that animals in crisis get the support they need,” according to the press release. Baypath hopes to be able to better serve the over 1,000 dogs and cats it provides care for annually.

Those interested in learning more about the project and donating to the cause can find more information on Baypath’s fundraising website at future.baypathhumane.org.

Latest News

Hopkinton High School’s literary magazine, Marginal, earned the first class award in the 2024 REALM competition held by the National Council of Teachers of English for a third time.

A two-vehicle crash on Chestnut Street Monday morning closed the street down for most of the morning and sent one man to the hospital.

The latest Real Estate Transactions list shows three homes sold in the past week, including one for $1 million.

This week’s Library Corner features information on a tiny art show, a red cross blood drive and multiple author talks.

Town meetings tonight include the Board of Assessors (5:30), the Select Board (6) and the Conservation Commission (7).

Photo of the Day

The sky above Legacy Farms glows yellow at sunset.

PHOTO/AMIT JAGDALE