Title
Staff Report for a City of San Leandro City Council Resolution to Approve and Authorize the City Manager to Execute an Animal Shelter Services Agreement with the East Bay SPCA for $290,000 and to Appropriate Additional Fiscal Year 2020-21 Funding of $104,169 from the General Fund Undesignated Fund Balance to the Animal Control Operating Account
Staffreport
RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends that the City Council review, approve, and authorize the City Manager to execute a new animal shelter services agreement with the East Bay SPCA for $290,000, replacing the current Tri-City Shelter’s agreement set to expire on December 31, 2020. Staff also request City Council appropriate additional Fiscal Year 2020-21 funding of $104,169 from the General Fund Undesignated Fund Balance to Account 010-22-001-5120.
BACKGROUND
Attached for City Council review is a new animal sheltering services agreement between the East Bay SPCA and the City of San Leandro to begin January 1, 2021. The Police Department currently utilizes the Tri-City Shelter to provide quality animal sheltering services as part of its core service delivery to the community. The Police Department has utilized Tri-City Shelter’s services since 2005 as part of a Joint Powers Authority (JPA), and Council authorized the current agreement on September 4, 2018. Tri-City Shelter also provides their services to the Cities of Fremont, Newark, and Union City.
The City of Fremont-who manages the Tri-City Shelter-notified the City in late July of its intent to terminate the current agreement to provide animal sheltering services due to capacity issues. Like many animal shelters, volume of service coupled with limited capacity to shelter that volume of animals across all four cities drove the decision to cancel service. In August, staff began a countywide survey of alternative animal shelters. Staff used the most recent service call volume logged at the City of Fremont’s shelter as a baseline for comparison to other shelters and to establish costs. The Police Department’s Animal Control unit surveyed the following animal shelters as possible alternatives: Berkeley, Hayward, Alameda (City), Alameda County, and the East Bay SPCA (Oakland). All but the East Bay SPCA declined based on capacity issues. The East Bay SPCA used the current service delivery data from Fremont to generate the cost of similar services at its shelter. The attached draft agreement would be used to finalize the agreement if City Council approves staff to proceed with finalizing the agreement.
The East Bay SPCA agreement is set for one year as a trial period to ensure the terms of service will work for both organizations. The Tri-City Shelter cost the City $81,661 in Fiscal Year 2020, which was approximately $20,000 lower than its prior three-year average of $102,138. The Police Department currently budgets $81,661 for animal shelter services and the new East Bay SPCA has a not to exceed value of $290,000, which will require Council to increase appropriations by $208,339 to fully fund this agreement. The proposed agreement carries over into Fiscal Year 2021-2022. Given that the agreement spans two fiscal years, staff requests the City Council increase appropriations for Fiscal Year 2020-2021 for half of the total cost of the new agreement, or $104,169. This increased appropriation should be sufficient to fund services from January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2021. Staff will request the remaining balance of the contract costs in the next biennial budget already underway for Fiscal Years 2021-2022. Should the trial period be successful, staff will bring a new, longer term agreement to Council in December, 2021.
PRIOR ACTIONS
• Resolution 2005-095: Joint Powers Authority for Animal Shelter Services
• Resolution 2018-101: Tri-City Shelters Agreement for Animal Shelter Services
BUDGET AUTHORITY
The Police Department budgets all associated contractual animal shelter service costs in its Animal Control budget, account code 010-22-001-5120. The new agreement will require increased Fiscal Year 2020-2021 General Fund appropriations of $104,169 to 010-22-001-5120 from the general fund economic uncertainty reserves.
ATTACHMENTS
• Tri-City Shelter Animal Shelter Service Agreement
• East Bay SPCA Animal Shelter Service Agreement
PREPARED BY: Scott Koll, Police Business Manager