Wasilla skeptical of borough's $150,000 animal control plan

WASILLA -- Picking up the city's dead dogs, strays and vicious animals is a $150,000 a year task, according to the Mat-Su Borough. But the Wasilla City Council and mayor say they doubt they got their money's worth even when the bill was a fraction of that.

Chief animal control offficer Dave Allison and Dennis Brodigan, deputy director of Emergency Services for the borough, faced a tough crowd earlier this week when they presented the city with a contract proposal that increases the city's annual cost from a flat $26,000 to an estimated $150,000. The agreement includes having an officer dedicated to patrolling the city and handling Wasilla animal cases eight hours a day, seven days a week, at a cost of nearly $77,000 based on the $12 per hour pay rate for an officer, benefits and vehicle expenses. The remaining expenses are variable, based on the number of legal cases handled on behalf of the city and the number of animals picked up, vaccinated, euthanized and cremated.

Brodigan and Allison said that in exchange for these fees, they are striving to provide better, more efficient services in the city and throughout the borough. But it was a tough sell.

"That's one hell of an increase," Mayor Dianne Keller said. The mayor apologized for the fact that Brodigan and Allison, having come into borough animal control within the last year, are "fresh meat," but she said it has long been a contentious issue between Wasilla and the borough.

Keller asked why city residents are seeing such a dramatic spike in their costs when the rest of the borough isn't being asked to pay more for animal control. Brodigan was unable to answer questions about boroughwide tax rates, but did say the city until this point hadn't been paying its fair share. He said there is much more that goes into animal control than simply picking up strays -- everything from chickens to "beefalos" are dropped off at the shelter and some situations evolve into lengthy legal battles.

While animal control's operating budget has increased 300 percent in recent years, he said, the city's rate has increased by just 8 percent.

But during that time there doesn't appear to have been a dramatic increase in the number of attacks or citations, argued Councilwoman Colleen Sullivan-Leonard.

"So my question to you is, where is your data to back up what you're saying?" she asked.

Because of the lack of past recordkeeping and the limitations of their current system, Brodigan and Allison said they could not provide such statistics. Allison said about 20 percent of the more than 3,000 animals that come through the shelter are Wasilla animals, but when a council member asked how they came up with that number, he admitted it was only an estimate.

"It's a tough figure to come up with," he said. "There's no truly accurate information. It is based on a hand count and the limited history I could find."

Brodigan said if animal control gets the new data system it is requesting from the borough, it would be able to provide these types of statistics and reports to the city. At the same time, he said they are willing to negotiate the details of the contract and that the cost to the city could prove to be considerably less than $150,000.

"None of this is chiseled in granite … it is an estimate," he said. When several council members suggested the contract stay as is, however, Brodigan said that wouldn't be an option.

"I can guarantee it won't be $26,000," Brodigan said.

At least one council member said even that might have been too much to pay.

"You guys haven't performed on the contract we have," Councilman Noel Lowe said. He said he fought the current agreement "tooth and nail" because the borough had failed to respond to calls or increase patrols.

"I'm upset there isn't a sense of accountability," Lowe said. "Last year, it was $26,000 … I'd like a break down of what we've been paying for."

Councilman Ron Cox said he has been in Wasilla since 1985 and has yet to ever see an animal control officer in the city.

"Why not?" he asked. "The dogs are running wild in the streets."

Brodigan and Allison said several times during the meeting that they could not speak to the motives or operating styles of past animal control officials, but that they are aiming, through education and better organization, to provide improved service.

In the end the council and mayor said they weren't interested in having animal control officers patrol the city on a full-time basis but would rather pay for on-call services. Before agreeing to anything, however, they wanted answers to a lengthy list of questions. For example, they wanted to know, how many cases are currently handled within city limits? Has that number increased over time? Are city residents already paying for borough animal control through the mill rate, and does the $150,000 contract equate to "double dipping?" What happens to the animal control fines city residents pay?

During a break in the meeting, Brodigan said he anticipated the discussion would be heated but he still felt the city and borough could come to a win-win agreement. He and Allison said they would research the questions and respond to the city within the next week. The council tentatively scheduled another special meeting on animal control issues for 6 p.m. Thursday, May 15.