A Lakewood Ranch pool company is donating an estimated $250,000 in construction services to rebuild the panther den at Big Cat Habitat Conservation and Education Center in Sarasota.

Family Pools, co-owned by Max and Paul Lautenschlager, announced the pro bono partnership Aug. 19, according to SRQ Magazine. The rebuilt den is expected to be active in early 2027, according to the announcement, giving the park’s resident Florida panthers a more enriching enclosure.

The project puts a familiar local business behind one of the country’s rarest and most endangered mammals. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission estimates that 120 to 230 adult panthers remain in the wild. The species currently occupies roughly 5% of its historic range, according to Inside Climate News. In the 1990s, the population dropped to an estimated 20 to 30 animals before a genetic-restoration program brought eight female Texas pumas to Florida.

Family Pools operates at Waterside Place in Lakewood Ranch. Max Lautenschlager serves as CEO, and Paul Lautenschlager serves as COO.

Big Cat Habitat, a nonprofit founded in 1987 by Kay Rosaire, sits on more than 20 acres at 7101 Palmer Blvd. in Sarasota. The center houses more than 300 animals across more than 60 species. It completed a Panther Pavilion in 2020. Clayton Rosaire, the center’s vice president and COO, joined the Lautenschlager brothers for the Aug. 19 announcement.

No groundbreaking date has been announced. The center is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.

Upcoming community calendar

Big Cat Habitat — Open Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 4 p.m., 7101 Palmer Blvd., Sarasota.

Waterside Place Farmers Market — Sundays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 1561 Lakefront Drive, Lakewood Ranch.