Portage, Porter County near agreement on animal shelter
May 12, 2017
Post-Tribune
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/news/ct-ptb-porter-animal-shelter-st-0513-20170512-story.html
Portage officials and the Porter County Board of Commissioners are on the cusp of signing an agreement that would bring animals from the city of Portage to the new county animal shelter instead of the Hobart Humane Society, officials said.
Humane Society officials have long said that what was supposed to be a temporary agreement to house animals collected by Portage's animal control and dropped off by its residents had stretched on for years, and they would no longer take the animals once the new shelter opened.
Portage is the only city in Porter County that doesn't take its animals to the county shelter, and officials there and with the county have been negotiating an agreement for several months.
"I think it's a win-win, and I think it's really great for the animals," said Commissioner Laura Blaney, D-South, adding that the new shelter, slated to open in the coming weeks, has the capacity for Portage's cats and dogs. "This has been our hope all along, and I'll be very happy when the ink is on the contract."
Officials said that under the terms of the contract, Portage will pay the county $36,000 for one year. The contract does not provide animal control services, which the city will continue to provide on its own.
The Portage Board of Works will receive the contract for approval at the May 23 meeting; the contract will then go to the county commissioners to be signed.
"We're not going to do their animal control, so obviously they're not going to pay for that," said county attorney Scott McClure.
The city's fee was determined by using a formula based on the number of animals brought into the facility.
"They got treated like everybody else," McClure said.
All of the county's contracts for the service expire in August 2018 and will be renegotiated next year to update the number of animals from each community, he said.
Portage pays about $24,000 a year to the Humane Society, said Clerk-Treasurer Chris Stidham, and, depending on the season, brings in 20 to 40 animals.
"We're very excited to be part of the new shelter," he said.
The new shelter, on Indiana 49 between the sheriff's department and the Expo Center, will replace the outdated facility at 2056 Heavilin Road. It will be 14,000 square feet and have the capacity for 120 dogs and 120 cats. The $3.25 million shelter is being funded with $2.25 million in proceeds from the sale of the county hospital and a $1 million private donation from Jacki Stutzman, Blaney's aunt.
Portage will keep its own animal control officers instead of relying on the county for that service, said Mayor James Snyder, with the potential to expand the service to the north part of the county under a future partnership.
"We've always wanted to keep the animal control. It's permanent, and it's very difficult for the county to cover us as well, and it's a public safety issue as well," he said. "I think the county and the city want to make the county better overall."
The Humane Society has been accepting Portage's animals for about 12 years, said Brenda Slavik, the facility's director. The shelter also accepts animals from Lake Station and Hobart under contract, as well as drop-offs from other communities, and has the capacity for 150 cats and dogs.
The switch will be a financial loss to the Humane Society, but that wasn't unexpected, and Slavik said the shelter will up its fundraising and find other ways to make up the lost income.
Though she expects some Portage residents will continue to bring their animals there out of convenience, Slavik said the additional space will mean the Humane Society can take in more animals.
"It'll be a lot more owners' animals we can take in, that have to surrender them," she said. "Otherwise they'll end up on the street."
May 12, 2017
Post-Tribune
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/news/ct-ptb-porter-animal-shelter-st-0513-20170512-story.html
Portage officials and the Porter County Board of Commissioners are on the cusp of signing an agreement that would bring animals from the city of Portage to the new county animal shelter instead of the Hobart Humane Society, officials said.
Humane Society officials have long said that what was supposed to be a temporary agreement to house animals collected by Portage's animal control and dropped off by its residents had stretched on for years, and they would no longer take the animals once the new shelter opened.
Portage is the only city in Porter County that doesn't take its animals to the county shelter, and officials there and with the county have been negotiating an agreement for several months.
"I think it's a win-win, and I think it's really great for the animals," said Commissioner Laura Blaney, D-South, adding that the new shelter, slated to open in the coming weeks, has the capacity for Portage's cats and dogs. "This has been our hope all along, and I'll be very happy when the ink is on the contract."
Officials said that under the terms of the contract, Portage will pay the county $36,000 for one year. The contract does not provide animal control services, which the city will continue to provide on its own.
The Portage Board of Works will receive the contract for approval at the May 23 meeting; the contract will then go to the county commissioners to be signed.
"We're not going to do their animal control, so obviously they're not going to pay for that," said county attorney Scott McClure.
The city's fee was determined by using a formula based on the number of animals brought into the facility.
"They got treated like everybody else," McClure said.
All of the county's contracts for the service expire in August 2018 and will be renegotiated next year to update the number of animals from each community, he said.
Portage pays about $24,000 a year to the Humane Society, said Clerk-Treasurer Chris Stidham, and, depending on the season, brings in 20 to 40 animals.
"We're very excited to be part of the new shelter," he said.
The new shelter, on Indiana 49 between the sheriff's department and the Expo Center, will replace the outdated facility at 2056 Heavilin Road. It will be 14,000 square feet and have the capacity for 120 dogs and 120 cats. The $3.25 million shelter is being funded with $2.25 million in proceeds from the sale of the county hospital and a $1 million private donation from Jacki Stutzman, Blaney's aunt.
Portage will keep its own animal control officers instead of relying on the county for that service, said Mayor James Snyder, with the potential to expand the service to the north part of the county under a future partnership.
"We've always wanted to keep the animal control. It's permanent, and it's very difficult for the county to cover us as well, and it's a public safety issue as well," he said. "I think the county and the city want to make the county better overall."
The Humane Society has been accepting Portage's animals for about 12 years, said Brenda Slavik, the facility's director. The shelter also accepts animals from Lake Station and Hobart under contract, as well as drop-offs from other communities, and has the capacity for 150 cats and dogs.
The switch will be a financial loss to the Humane Society, but that wasn't unexpected, and Slavik said the shelter will up its fundraising and find other ways to make up the lost income.
Though she expects some Portage residents will continue to bring their animals there out of convenience, Slavik said the additional space will mean the Humane Society can take in more animals.
"It'll be a lot more owners' animals we can take in, that have to surrender them," she said. "Otherwise they'll end up on the street."
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