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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-31-1995 City Council Study Session MINUTES CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION CITY OF LAKE ELSINORE 130 SOUTH MAIN STREET LAKE ELSINORE, CALIFORNIA CONFERENCE ROOM A & B TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1995 ***************************************************************** CALL TO ORDER Mayor Washburn called the City Council Study Session to order at 8:39 a.m. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Community Services Director Sapp. ROLL CALL PRESENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: ALONGI, BENDER, BRINLEY, PAPE, WASHBURN ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE Also present were: City Manager Molendyk, Community Services Director Sapp, Community Services Manager Edelbrock , Representative of L.E.A.F., Ann Washington and Deputy City Clerk Bryning. DISCUSSION ITEM 1. L.E.A.F. Animal Control Ordinance Revisions. (F: 1<6.\) City Manager Molendyk explained that the purpose of this Study Session is to give Council the opportunity to ask questions regarding Animal Control and the proposed Ordinance revisions. Ann Washington, representative of L.E.A.F., explained that the major issues for consideration deal with the proposed outdoor cat licensing program, breeding permit program and a one year breeding moratorium as well as revisions of the existing fee structure. Mayor Washburn asked about the moratorium and how it will be monitored. Mrs. Washington stated that it would be monitored the same way that they handle complaints and through licensing. She stated that they will not go door to door, but will continue to do business the same as they are now. Councilman Alongi stated that the way the Moratorium on Breeding reads is that "No person shall cause or allow any cat or dog owned, harbored or kept by that person within the City of Lake Elsinore to breed or reproduce during the moratorium." and that says that if a person has an unaltered female or male that the person could not breed them. Mrs. Washington stated . ~ PAGE TWO - CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION - OCTOBER 31, 1995 breeding. Mrs. Washington stated that the next step is the mandatory spay/neuter which would mean either the owner plans to breed and they get a permit or they don't. Councilman Alongi stated that in the second part of the Moratorium it states "No person shall transport any dog or cat, from or within the City of Lake Elsinore for the purposes of breeding such dog or cat." and again this translates that a person cannot bring a dog or cat into the City for the sole purpose of breeding it without permission. He explained that he does not want to remove the right of a person if they want to breed their dog or cat, whether it is a registered animal or a mongrel. He stated that he felt that it should read that "If any animal is captured outside the home unlicensed or licensed and appears to be pregnant then the rules would apply, but he felt that it is wrong to tell a person that they do not have the right to breed their animal. He stated that it is a violation of a persons Civil Rights. Mayor Washburn asked if other cities are doing the same program. Mrs. Washington stated that some areas have this program, but the most popular is the mandatory spay/neuter program or breeding permit. Mayor Washburn confirmed that it is mandatory. Mrs. Washington stated that the mandatory program has worked very well and there are only a few areas utilizing the Moratorium On Breeding of Cats and Dogs program. Councilwoman Brinley stated that she felt that the Moratorium would be a tough law to enforce and asked how they would man a campaign to educate the people. She commented that it would need more of an extensive time period to educate the people. Mrs. Washington stated that with an agency like L.E.A.F. if there are tools on the books it can be enforced. She compared it to the Seat Belt Law and explained that even though people knew that it was better and safer for them to wear seat belts it wasn't until the law went into effect that they wore their belts and this would be the same type of issue. She explained that if they advertised it on Cable T.V. as well as a flyer sent to every resident, then she felt that education and awareness would be satisfied. Councilwoman Brinley asked if first time offenders would get warnings. Mrs. Washington stated that it would be like a fix-it ticket, and if the animal has a litter, they must get their animal spayed or neutered or pay the fine. She explained the enforcement procedures. Councilman Alongi stated that if L. E .A. F. wants to enact strict fines against those who allow their animals to run loose and breed, he does not have a problem with fining those in violation, but he does have a problem with the fact that any person who owns an animal, if the moratorium goes into effect, must show proof that the animal was breed out of state or be in violation of the law. He pointed out that this would attack those who may be law abiding citizens. He stated that he felt L.E.A.F. should go after the people who allow their animals to run loose and do not accept responsibility for the - - PAGE THREE - CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION - OCTOBER 31, 1995 Mrs. Washington pointed out the cat situation and explained that from June 1, to June 19, L.E.A.F. received 488 cats and kittens. She stated that there is no licensing for cats and they get no financial support for that effort. Councilwoman Brinley stated that somehow the over population needs to be addressed. She stated that the verbiage should be altered to give flexibility for the owner who has a litter and gives them away. She further stated that she has no problem with mandatory spay and neutering since she feels that the City needs to take a stand somewhere. Councilman Alongi asked how the City can enforce the Ordinance where there are no facilities to enforce it. He explained that the persons who will be hit by this are the persons who unintentionally violate the Ordinance and did not know. He pointed out that those persons who are negligent are going to be negligent whether the City enforces this or not. He pointed out that this Ordinance should be aimed at persons who are irresponsible and asked that the City not discourage those who are responsible. Mrs. Washington stated that she knows several people who are responsible and allow their animals to breed and find them good homes, however those good homes might not necessarily be a good home later on. She pointed out that those animals end up in the shelter and have no home. She noted that if persons see that what they do causes more animals to be put to death, then they would be made to take responsibility. Councilman Alongi pointed out that this is the reason why there are higher fees for unaltered animals. Mrs. Washington stated that if there were no moratorium, but a mandatory spay/neuter program they would still do a media education and enforce a breeding permit. Mayor Washburn noted the time and money L.E.A.F. spends for handling cats and dogs and asked if this program is to relieve the costs and reduce the amount spent to meet the budget. Mrs. Washington stated that if they can reduce the. numbers being born then they will reduce the problem. Mrs. Washington explained that her organization does free spay/neuter for people and even provide transportation which is not paid for by the City. She further explained that they educate at the schools, their officers educate on the streets and staff educates people. This is in a effort to try to solve the problems. She pointed out the money the City gives to L.E.A.F. pays for animal control. She pointed out that it cost approximately $200 a day to kill animals and this needs to be addressed and stopped. Councilwoman Brinley asked which cities use the Moratorium. Mrs. Washington stated that the majority of cities and counties are using the mandatory spay/neuter program and it works well. She gave an overview of the program and how it operates. She stated that they need to solve the problem with the shrinking budget situation that we are all faced with. PAGE FOUR - CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION - OCTOBER 31, 1995 the animals in for spaying and neutering. He stated that he would be interested in contacting the cities that have mandatory spay/neutering and cat licensing. He asked how big the area is that L.E.A.F. covers. She stated that what she is here for today is only the City of Lake Elsinore. and their efforts address the City of Lake Elsinore only. She stated that L.E.A.F. does contract with Canyon Lake and Murietta. She noted that Temecula has asked -. them to take over their program. She pointed out that all the other agencies that have come in have helped them to survive and spread the expenses out. She explained that the County brings in animals to hold and L.E.A.F. receives a fee for holding. City Manager Molendyk stated that the City has a budget of $75,000 and asked how much Murietta and Temecula pays. Mrs. Washington stated that Murietta pays $60,000 for 4 hours service and Temecula will pay $80,000 for 6 hours of service. She pointed out that the City of Lake Elsinore receives 10 hours of service. City Manager Molendyk explained that the City receives a greater level of service for our dollar in comparison to other cities. Mrs. Washington gave an overview of the activity report and noted that they experienced a loss of $5,971 in this quarter. She pointed out that the City of San Jacinto is cutting their Animal Control program and their police will pick up dead dogs and handle biting problems only. She made note of the fact that the mandatory spay/neuter program will help to solve the overpopulation problems and aid in cutting costs. City Councilmember Pape stated that he felt that Council was not in favor of the Moratorium. He stated that he is in favor of cat licensing since he has always felt that it is unfair to have dog owners purchase a license and not cat owners. He pointed out that they are both house pets and should be treated equal. He asked why the licensing fees are different for cats than they are for dogs. Mrs. Washington stated that it is to get people into the program and she feels that people would get involved with the program if it were made reasonable. She stated that L.E.A.F. would be willing to put in the microchip which costs $6.00 and a rabies vaccine which costs a $1.00. She explained that then if the cat were picked up it could be scanned and returned to its home. Councilman Pape asked if Mrs. Washington had estimated the amount of revenue it would generate if cats were licensed. Mrs. Washington stated that she could not guess and explained that this would be a voluntary program. She explained that the vets would keep track of the amount of shots that cats receive and microchips. Mrs. Washington stated that the vets she has spoken to will agree to provide the information and assist in the licensing. Councilman Pape asked if by implementing the cat license would be sufficient to off-set the $20,000 cut in funding that occurred. Mrs. Washington stated that if the fee for a license for an unaltered animal are charged it would assist. Councilman Pape stated that he did not have a problem - PAGE FIVE - CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION - OCTOBER 31, 1995 City Manager Molendyk stated that this is a needed service and pointed out Proposition 4 which is aimed at the "User Pays" principle. He made note of the fact that Mrs. Washington is making an attempt to implement this principle and it does benefit owners to spay or neuter their animals and would make the program more self supporting. Councilman Alongi pointed out that the license for a pot bellied pig is $250 and asked how many licenses there are for them in the City. Mrs. Washington stated that there are 2. Councilman Alongi pointed out that the amount charged will aid in control. He suggested that the fee is the key and if it is $75 for an unaltered dog and $10 for an altered dog then it will encourage people to pursue this. He pointed out that the obj ecti ve of this entire program is to make people take responsibility for their animals and not to discourage them. He stated that people understand money. He stated that he wishes to encourage people to alter their animals and not give them up because it is too expensive to keep them. Councilman Alongi pointed out that the City has euthanized 25% more cats than dogs and yet the cost of a license is 50% less and a cat is a pet just the same as a dog and should be licensed the same. He pointed out that we need to find an area to control the situation to assist the budget and he feels that raising fees is not the answer. He stated that he felt that it should be addressed through violations. He pointed out that if a person is a breeder and is making money on the litters then they should have a business license. City Manager Molendyk asked for clarification from Councilman Alongi regarding the pet owners take responsibility, then the City should not have to under write the cost. Councilman Alongi stated that if L.E.A.F. could raise their fees, then they could relieve the City budget, but it will take time to put the program in place. He pointed out that the responsible person saves L.E.A.F. money as well as the City since the major cost of Animal Control is patrol service and euthanization. He stated that he wants to encourage people to go to L.E.A.F. He further noted that the City has a JPIA with insurance and parks and asked it be considered to have a JPIA with Canyon Lake, Murietta and Temecula for Animal Control. He pointed out that this would facilitate a building and vets to do free altering and help solve some of the problems. There was general discussion regarding breeding and the need for a business license. City Manager Molendyk explained that through the efforts of control the City and L.E.A.F. can reduce costs and ultimately the program could be self supporting. Councilman Alongi stated that the City has the ability to lien property to recover costs and asked how L.E.A.F. could enforce. Mrs. Washington explained that it is through citations. She explained that if they have the animal altered .&....1- _ __ .1-'_ PAGE SIX - CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION - OCTOBER 31, 1995 funding. Mrs. Washington pointed out the difference in the numbers between cities and the level of service. She pointed out that they use state of the art vehicles which the City has not paid for and pointed out that they receive state funding as well as grant money. Mayor Washburn made note of the fact that Council will no longer make vicious dog decisions and he was very much in __ favor of that. Mrs. Washington stated that they are pursuing grant monies as well as having received an estate and are planning a state of the art facility. Councilman Alongi stated that he felt that the JPIA would be a good thing because there would be no division between cities and it would make possible new and better facilities with better service. Mrs. Washington stated that the County has requested that L.E.A.F. redo the Animal Control Ordinance and she is proposing a change in the material presented to Council which was from the County of Riverside. She asked that Section 62.701. ANIMALS IN UNATTENDED VEHICLES read as follows: No person shall leave an animal in any unattended vehicle without adequate ventilation or in such a manner as to subject the animal to extreme temperatures which adversely affect the animal's health or welfare. Community Services Director Sapp stated that he felt that it was important to curtail over population of the animals and stated that he felt that this could be done through mandatory altering and a change in the fee structures. He explained that he felt that the money that was cut from the Animal Control budget could be made up in this way. - Mrs. Washington asked if Council would like the Moratorium to be eliminated from further discussion. Mayor Washburn suggested that Mrs. Washington submitted the Mandatory Spay/Neuter program as well as the Moratorium language to give Council the opportunity to choose. Mrs. Washington suggested that the Moratorium be dropped and the Mandatory Spay/Neuter program be addressed because it is a needed tool. Councilman Alongi stated that there are responsible people who do not like to alter their animals and do not let their animals run wild. He stated that this is where he is having a problem. He explained that if they want to pay an additional charge for having an unaltered animal in their yard or in their home, then they should be allowed that opportunity. He stated that he felt that it is important to go after the people who are negligent time after time that need to be addressed, then it should be mandatory to alter their animals. Councilman Alongi stated that he is opposed to any kind of mandatory altering unless the order comes from PAGE SEVEN - CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION - OCTOBER 31, 1995 Council concurred that cats should be treated the same as dogs. ADJOURNMENT MAYOR WASHBURN ADJOURNED THE CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION AT 9:25 P.M. Respectfully Submitted, MAYOR (U ~f ; Adria L. Bry Clerk 2f;~w VICKI KASAD, CITY CLERK