Animals outside the city limits will no longer be accepted at the DeKalb Animal Shelter after a vote during Thursday night’s work session and special called meeting of the Smithville Mayor and Aldermen. That is 67 percent of the shelter’s population.
Several concerns with the contract were discussed. Coalition Board Members Sue Puckett and Marsha Darrah were on-hand to represent the Coalition at Thursday’s work session and meeting.
“What I have a problem with is all of the things (in the contract) fall to two people,” said Megan Moore, shelter director. “It’s not shared with the rest of the board. The day to day operation – that’s headed up by me and Emmaly. The major projects, all the improvements at the shelter – headed up by me and Emmaly. It’s very frustrating knowing we have an infrastructure problem and not being able to fix it.”
“It’s not an office job,” Moore continued, “where you clock in and clock out. There are animal control calls after hours.”
Moore said to make it work the way she would like for it to work, ideally four full time employees are needed.
“We spent $150,000 on that building in addition to what the city and county appropriated,” said Puckett.
Both the City of Smithville and the DeKalb County Government appropriated $75,000 for construction of the shelter and the Coalition raised funds and borrowed money to complete it.
However, expense is just part of the problem. There is an issue of liability. City officials are concerned about sending city employees out into the county for the purposes of animal control.
The two full time employees who work at the new shelter, Director Megan Moore and Emmaly Bennett, are employed by the City of Smithville. The Coalition also funds a part time employee. The city provides a truck for the shelter which is used for animal transports and the city has other expenses related to the shelter as specified in a 99 year lease which the city entered into with the Coalition in 2015. The original agreement was for the city to fund only one full time and a part time employee but that was later changed due to the workload.
City officials say the City of Smithville has more than done its part.
“In fiscal year 2015, before the new shelter was built, we spent roughly $60,000,” said the city’s financial advisor Janice Plemmons-Jackson. “In 2016 we spent $63,071. In 2017 we spent $64,000. In 2018, not counting the $75,000 that we gave toward building the shelter, we spent $118,372. In 2019 we spent $103,000 and in 2020 we have spent almost $115.000 so we have almost doubled what the city has been spending since before the building was built and what we have been contributing.
“What we committed to originally was one full time and a part time employee, a vehicle and utilities. In addition to that you have some salary payroll taxes, insurance, retirement, repairs and maintenance, supplies, uniforms, the vehicle operation, and we do insure the building. They, the Coalition, insure the contents, etc. So our costs have doubled yet we are getting no revenue, from the shelter. I don’t see a whole lot of what they are contributing other than they have got the building in place for us,” Jackson concluded.
Under a memorandum of understanding with the county, the Coalition is to pick up animals for the county when a request is made from the county mayor’s office or the sheriff’s department for a fee of $110. However, city officials say the City of Smithville is not a party to that agreement.
“My biggest concern is our city employees having to go out into the county to get these animals,” said Alderman Brandon Cox. “All the while they are on the clock for the city using city equipment with city liability. I don’t think that is appropriate without the county being involved. We are mandated by statute for animal control in the city but not in the county. My problem is when they get called out into the county, there is no way for them to take off their city hat and put on a county hat so we have crossed boundaries here that are legally fuzzy and dubious at best. I think for our city employees we don’t need to be answering those county calls until this is straightened out.
“I make a motion that the city employees at the animal shelter no longer go out into the county to pick up animals and that no county animals be accepted at the shelter at this time.” said Alderman Cox.
County animals already being housed at the shelter may remain there.
Darrah said the Coalition was organized to serve all municipalities in the county.
