County Animal Shelter Still Best Deal For Middle Township

The following is a release from Middle Township Committeeman Timothy Donohue:
COURT HOUSE – Well executed shared services agreements have the ability to enhance services provided and save many towns money. This leads many of us to wonder why there aren’t more shared services agreements in place. When I first took office in 2011, I quickly learned that, like many seemingly simple solutions, the devil is in the details. Now imagine a shared services agreement that involves 15 separate towns and the county of Cape May, along with several nonprofit agencies and well-meaning private donors.  
Is it any wonder that the renewal of the Cape May County Animal Shelter shared services agreement has been a somewhat messy process? Every town involved, along with the folks who run the shelter, shares the same love of animals and the same commitment to their well-being. Still, each town has a responsibility to get the best bang for their buck when committing to any financial expenditure, especially a large sum of money over a long period of time. It is only natural for there to be some tension in any negotiations. In the end we must be comfortable and confident that we have explored all of our options and come to a solution that is most viable for our residents. 
As the county shelter moves into its second decade of operation, the formula for funding the shelter has moved from a population based calculation to a new pricing structure based on usage of the shelter. This change caused a drastic increase in the annual rate applied to Middle Township, the county’s largest municipality by area and second largest by population. Some towns saw similar increases, while others saw significant reductions in their annual projected costs. In a world of two percent budget cap increases, a 70 percent increase in our costs, year to year (with further increases over the life of the five year contract), left us with no choice but to at least explore other options for sheltering and innovative ways to reduce these costs. I simply could not, in good conscience, approve rubber stamping this new contract and moving on. We had homework to do on behalf of our taxpayers. 
Middle Township’s commitment to animal welfare cannot be called into question. One of the first acts taken in my time on Committee was to rescind several shared services agreements that required Middle Township’s Animal Control Officer to provide services to several other communities. The Township gave up about $40,000 in income, but I thought it was essential that our Animal Control Officer spend his working hours exclusively in Middle Township. This is an issue of public safety, which should always be our number one priority.   
In 2014, as mayor, I was honored to receive a Certificate of Appreciation from the United States Humane Society. The award was in recognition of our establishing the first municipal Animal Advisory Board in the state of NJ. Our Board has done great work in revising and strengthening our Animal Control Ordinance, raising awareness of the dangers of pets in hot cars and spreading the word about our annual rabies clinics, our new three-year dog license and the importance of the spay/neuter program.  
I fully recognize all the hard work and endless volunteer hours that went into making the county animal shelter a reality. I have never supported the concept of creating our own animal shelter. But you can’t really engage in any fair negotiation without some leverage. Therefore, we sought to explore a viable alternative, at a lower cost. Our Administrator Connie Mahon left no stone unturned. As always, she sought bold, innovative, out-of-the-box solutions. Over a period of six months, while also collecting data from the county and negotiating in good faith, we explored every viable option and the cost involved. We owed that to our taxpayers. In the end, in my opinion and the opinion of our Animal Advisory Board, despite the large increase in annual fees, the county shelter is still the best, long-term option and the most cost effective solution to our animal sheltering needs. 
Ocean City, which runs its own shelter, handles a similar amount of animal cases to what Middle Township would see if we attempted to go it alone. Ocean City’s annual budget for their shelter is around $300,000. They already have their shelter building in place. We would be starting from scratch. This option makes no sense when considering the cost involved and the time and energy required to attempt a large capital project.
The temporary arrangement currently in place (while we continue to narrow the differences between our terms and the county’s proposal), is not a viable long-term option and does not come close to providing the quality and quantity of services that the county shelter can offer. Trying to cobble together a combination of other towns outside the county shelter system would only create two weakened, bickering and higher costs entities, struggling to survive. 
At this point, I’m in favor of approving the new five-year contract with the county, but with some important concessions. As part of our ongoing discussions, the county shelter manager is open to the idea of giving the shelter’s stakeholders more say in how the funding mechanisms are developed, better access to costs and records and more input on the future vision for the shelter. The township is requesting a 90-day out clause. This would allow us to escape the five-year contract, if we felt the county was not honoring its commitment to be open to negotiate the cost in future years. Middle Township, as the host town for the shelter and a major contributor to the cost of the shelter’s operations, deserves a seat at the table and a voice in how the shelter is operated. We are willing to pay our fair share, as long as the costs are properly documented and justified. 
Long term, I would like to see the cost of operating the shelter rolled into the county tax rate. We don’t pay for the county jail based on the number of offenders we send there or pay for the library system based on the number of books we borrow. But this is a discussion for another day. In the meantime, we need to have a little faith in each other and remember that we all share the same mission, enhancing the ethical and humane treatment of the animals we love.