The Mount Vernon Animal Sanctuary is closing after town officials decided to contract with the Humane Society of Westchester for shelter services.
The city council voted unanimously on Friday to approve the contract and it goes before the acquisition and contract board for final approval on Tuesday.
The contract was negotiated over the past six weeks by Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard’s administration as the condition of the shelter on Garden Avenue deteriorated. The refuge continued to be cited for reports and structural violations by the state Department of Agriculture.
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The refuge, which opened in 1974, will close at the end of January. Six of the 22 dogs and six of the 31 cats still at the shelter had already been placed with the Humane Society or rescue groups, the mayor said at a news conference on Monday.
According to the council’s decision, the Humane Society contract includes the last two weeks of December and will cost the city just over $140,000 through the end of 2023.
The plan was first made public last week on the Facebook page of Friends of Mount Vernon Shelter Animals Inc., a group that has supported the shelter financially and with volunteers for several years.
“We look forward to supporting this transition in any way we can,” the post read. “At this time, our main priority is to help Mount Vernon Animal Sanctuary find a placement for their current animals.”
Former mayors Richard Thomas and Andre Wallace, bitter political rivals who each plan to challenge Patterson-Howard in next year’s Democratic primary, gathered at a protest rally outside the shelter on Saturday, criticizing their successor not doing enough to keep the shelter going. They wondered why some of the $41 million the city received in US bailout funds for coronavirus relief over the past two years couldn’t be used to build a new roof and bring in more structural improvements to the shelter.
Thomas called the shelter’s closure a “ruthless decision”.
“And then say to all the other communities in Westchester, ‘Hey. Here is our problem. Here’s our problem,” Thomas said. “It’s disrespectful.”
Patterson-Howard countered Monday that officials made the decision to save money and provide better prospects for the animals. She said animals sent to the renovated facilities of the Humane Society would have better conditions and a higher likelihood of adoption.
“The most important part is that it increases the quality of life and the safety of the animals,” she said.
She said ARPA funds were used to “rebuild the foundations of city services” and to make much-needed upgrades to outdated infrastructure and equipment. She said officials set priorities, in part, on a survey asking townspeople how the money should be spent, suggesting the animal shelter was not high on the list.
In September, state inspections revealed “unsatisfactory” conditions at the shelter. There was excessive rodent waste, medication that was not properly overseen by a veterinarian, and shelter officials had not filed reports related to euthanasia, adoption, and transfer of animals. There was also no record of the fees collected by the city before the impounded animals were returned to their owners.
City spending on the shelter has risen from $216,000 in 2021, Patterson-Howard’s second year in office, to $275,000 this year with the addition of paid community service assistance. That figure would drop to $201,000 next year under the mayor’s proposed budget for 2023, which includes the elimination of animal helper and assistant custodian positions, but an increase in “animal shelter expenses.” from $90,000 to $140,000, reflecting the new contract.
But the mayor said the savings would be closer to $300,000, with benefits and other expenses taken into account. She included the cost of a police officer who will no longer have to be assigned to the animal shelter, although that money is not specifically spared. She cited the benefit of an extra officer on patrol in a city that has seen police staffing shortages in recent years.
The city will continue to have an animal custodian, with a salary of $61,989, to respond to animal emergencies and coordinate with the Humane Society of New Rochelle for the management of stray animals in the city.
The Humane Society’s executive director was unavailable Monday. The 111-year-old agency already manages accommodation services for New Rochelle and 17 other municipalities in Westchester.
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