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Concerned regarding Petaluma’s budget cuts and public safety.
Elimination of 3 School Resource Officers, a part time DARE officer, Alcohol Control+Enforcement Programs eliminated + Traffic Enforcement reduced by half to return officers to patrol. The traffic safety motorcycle officers reduced 50% and special enforcement officers returned to patrol. Operations that respond to emergency calls, critical incident, criminal investigations + neighborhood problem solving, eliminated 1 lieutenant and 6 officer positions.
Animal Services says their challenges are to provide high level of services to our community and properly care for animals with fewer staff members and reduced funding. During FY 08-09 lost 1 full-time and 1 part-time Animal Care Assistants, who provide direct animal care. We are hopeful that we will not have to euthanize animals due to lack of funds.
#1 They have had 8 full time people for over 5 years and every year they go over budget. Last year went $145,000 over budget. On top of that when the 3 Animal Control Officers are off, the Police Department has to respond to their calls. One part time Animal Care Asst was laid off so they pay the Shelter Supervisor $53,000 a year+benefits to clean cages and job duties that are the same as the Animal Services Manager who gets paid MORE than a Police Officer.
Does Petaluma really need an Animal Services Manager AND Animal Shelter Supervisor?
Yes, the Shelter Supervisor is in charge of getting volunteers to work for free at the shelter, but no other department has that luxury. No doubt Park+Rec would like to have a $56,000 salaried volunteer coordinator, instead of closing the teen center and cutting senior services, etc and perhaps the Police could have volunteers in the schools.
Our City Manager’s letter to the council says “In that regard, seeking opportunities to partner with other organizations to share costs and generate funding become all the more important, and will continue to be pursued in the coming year."John C. Brown“
This begs the question, why hasn’t the City taken up Forgotten Felines offer to work FOR FREE with Feral Cats in 2004, 2008 and last April that would of saved Petaluma a minimum $123,000 thousand dollars?
On average, communities in the US spend aprox $8.00 per capita for animal shelters. The City of Santa Rosa pays $3.93 per capita while Petaluma pays $13.70 per capita. So Petaluma pays almost $10 more per person than Santa Rosa. Every City in Sonoma Co and the County works with Forgotten Felines except the City of Petaluma. No City in Sonoma Co. or the County has a “Trap and Kill" Feral Cat Ordinance, yet Petaluma’ Animal Shelter is a "No Kill" Animal Shelter.
If the Shollenberger docents or City Employee, Margaret Orr see a stray cat they call Animal Services and tell them to come out and trap it. An Animal Control Officer told me he has to check a trap every couple of hours so the cat isn't in the trap without food or water for days. He said until the City Council changes the current ordinance he has no choice and has to trap the cats. He doesn’t like to because he knows they will not be adopted out and will be euthanized. He also has other calls to respond to. Not including the Animal Control officer's time ($83 an hour) to trap, pick up, hold and euthanize a stray or feral cat, depending on the number of days, it costs $130 -$357 per cat.
4 hours Animal Control Officer Time, 7 day stay at shelter = $550.00 a cat. Animal Services Manager, Nancy Tavares estimates Petaluma euthanizes 178 feral cats a year.
Doesn’t Petaluma have better things to spend our money on than this? My husband and I want the City of Petaluma to stop spending our taxes on putting all these cats to sleep.
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