High cost of Animal Control under review

BradfordTimes.ca
July 4, 2014
Miriam King

In 2011, the Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury signed an agreement, giving the Animal Control contract to the City of Vaughan. Prior to that, Kennel Inn in Aurora held the contract.

When the facility in Vaughan was constructed to replace Kennel Inn, BWG increased the level of service, negotiating for 35 hours per week of Animal Control plus emergency response, and pound services.

It has come with a steep price tag. In the 2014-15 fiscal year, the Town will be paying a whopping $180,576. That includes, service, emergency response, and nearly $90,000 a year for pound services.

On June 17, Jon Popple, Manager of Enforcement, presented a business case for the Town to handle its own domestic animal control services, by hiring a full-time Animal Control Officer.

Popple told Council that bringing Animal Control in-house would provide 7-day per week service, increasing the coverage from the current 1,820 hours per year, to 2,548 hours. The Animal Control Officer would also be appointed to enforce all municipal by-laws, resulting in better enforcement all-round.

He noted that the Town could contract with a local service provider for pound services, within BWG - at a “considerable” cost saving.

Currently, Vaughan charges BWG $89,148 for annual pound services. Last year, only 97 cats and dogs picked up in BWG were housed at the Vaughan pound - which works out to over $890 per animal.

And having the pound in Vaughan, Popple pointed out, means that owners must travel 40 km each way, to Creditstone Rd. and Rutherford Rd., to retrieve their animals.

Should Council agree with his proposal, the Town would need to purchase a specialized animal control vehicle, and equipment for the trapping, transporting and control of domestic animals - at a cost of $40,000. There is some money in the 2014 budget already, for the purchase of a less specialized vehicle.

Popple suggested giving Vaughan Animal Control the required 180 days notice that the contract will be terminated, and hiring a municipal law enforcement officer, at an annual salary of $79,018, to take over Animal Control services in 2015.

“It’s an enhanced service that would allow us to look at all By-law (issues), not just animals.”

Several Councillors were less than enthusiastic. Councillor Gary Lamb agreed that the fee charged by Vaughan for 97 domestic animals per year - “no skunks, no raccoons” - was excessive but, he said, “I don’t want to create another Town department just yet.”

He urged staff to contact Vaughan and renegotiate the bill, or at least use a local pound. “I want to make sure we do this very critically. I don’t want to hire a $79,000 (per year) person... I’d rather see this thing put off until we look at Budget. I really don’t want to build a bigger staff for something I don’t see as the biggest priority in the Town.”

Councillor Carl Hordyk agreed. “I like the idea of a made-in-Bradford solution, but I agree with my colleague - we need to wait for budget deliberations.”

And Councillor James Leduc asked for other options, for a local solution.

Mayor Doug White disagreed. He pointed out that the report suggests annual savings of $45,000 to $50,000 - “a higher level of service for less money, and the sooner we get started, the sooner we save taxpayers’ money.”

The new by-law enforcement officer would also be looking at other infractions, such as signage and illegal dumping, noted Councillor Raj Sandhu , “not just cats and dogs.” Sandhu added, “To me, it makes sense. At the end of the day it saves us money.”

Council voted 5 to 3 in favour of deferring a decision until the fall, and the 2015 Budget. Popple later indicated that the Town would likely look at sending out a Request for Proposals in the fall, to take a look at its options.