Christine Whelan FEO, May 26, 2022, VOL. 3 ISSUE 20

The Town Council Meeting on May 9 went well into the night as one of the hardest decisions had to be made by the Mayor and Council.

Councillor Zanko, who chaired, addressed the room before the first of five speakers began. “I know this is a really sensitive topic. And I also know it takes a lot of courage to come up and speak to council. So, I’m asking everyone to be respectful this evening.”

Julie Ayres, a Stevensville resident and President of the Fort Erie SPCA presented on behalf of the Board. She provided a list of points for keeping the services in Fort Erie as opposed to transferring them to the Lincoln County SPCA, arguing there would not be the seamless service provided by an outside source.

Ayres commented, “Fort Erie is fully staffed and readily available to provide service. Lincoln County’s proposal was based on a staff that has yet to be hired and a facility that is not yet operational, a facility that is outside of Fort Erie.”

She continued to state the further value to Fort Erie the local SPCA provides, such as co-op students placement opportunities, and employment opportunities for the Native Centre, John Howard Society, and Community Living.

Wendy Trombley, Manager of the Fort Erie SPCA, answered questions council addressed to her around the local shelter’s operations.

Council Butler asked Trombley how it would look if they lost the contract if they could survive.

Butler commented to Trombley, “I don’t feel that losing this contract is going to be detrimental to your organization. I think it’s an opportunity for you to reorganize, recalibrate and look at more modern techniques of revenue streams.”

A Fort Erie resident, Russ Young spoke in support of the Fort Erie SPCA, stating he felt that with a growing community such as the Greater Fort Erie area, services should be added, not taken away.

Reverend Martha Lockwood, a 21-year resident of Crystal Beach who grew up in Fort Erie, also spoke in support of the Fort Erie SPCA. The former member of Town Council and President of the Board of Directors for the SPCA sees a decision to not give the contract to the Fort Erie SPCA as short sighted, punitive and personal.

Lockwood shared stories highlighting the Fort Erie SPCA’s quick responses, among other ways she feels the organization is beneficial to the community. She also commented she thought that their policies and procedures need to be changed. In the end, Martha admitted she hoped the Town would reconsider and award the contract to Fort Erie.

Councillor Butler asked Martha if she was aware of the issues and asked if there were issues when she was on the Board. “Were you aware that there was an investigation put forward by the Board of Directors of the SPCA to investigate all the claims — there were 46 that I can count — and that the investigator did, in fact, interview quite a number of individuals? He concluded there were issues that were systemic that were present for many years.”

Lockwood was aware of the investigation. She agreed that changes need to be made from a management point of view.

Councillor Butler stated to Martha that there were insufficient policies and procedures, and listed further issues, ending with, this is not personal.

Councillor Lubberts countered with Lockwood, mentioning that other locations have had controversy, including Lincoln County, making his point, “It’s not unfamiliar for there to be controversy when you’re talking about services for animals.” All the humane societies in Niagara have had their problems, and they both agreed. Councillor Lubberts asked if Martha thought the problems were fixable. She answered, yes.

A group of 19 residents supporting LCHS being awarded the contract filled one side of the room, all garbed in purple t-shirts with the message, “OUR ANIMALS NEED CHANGE”.

Jamielee Vail of Ridgeway took the podium. “This presentation will reiterate why this change is a necessity.”

She reminded, “The Town is not taking away the Fort Erie SPCA building. The building is a component but not the objective of animal control and care. What we are proposing is a new plan of service for the animals.”

Vail described why she is impressed with Lincoln County. She included that while Fort Erie came in with the lowest points, Lincoln County had the most points required during the bid. She emphasized, in 2020, a petition with over 4,300 signatures was presented, signed by people who want change and better service for Fort Erie.

Councillor Butler asked Jamielee if she was aware that during the investigation of the Fort Erie SPCA, 33 people who had negative experiences were contacted requesting interviews and 22 of them were voluntarily interviewed. “And were you aware of the findings from those interviews? That there were systemic problems at the SPCA of Fort Erie?” Vail had been aware.

Mayor Redekop had to speak once to those present about respect, asking all to be quiet.

Carly Zarzycki spoke next. She introduced herself as a Fort Erie resident for over ten years and a mail carrier for over three years. “In that time, I’ve had nothing but negative experiences with the Fort Erie SPCA.”

She shared several stories of these experiences and called for accountability.

The council members then had the opportunity of given their final statements.

Councillor Noyes voiced she had had her concerns about service response time if Lincoln County was awarded the contract but found out the response time will be “very adequate”. She found out they will have staff in the area for eight-hour shifts and additional staff when needed.

She had gone to the LCHS the day of the council meeting, doing a thorough review of their services and was “impressed”. She found their policies and procedures were in good working order.

With regards to the Fort Erie SPCA, Councillor Noyes said she personally didn’t have any problems with the shelter. In fact, she found that a year ago during her visit, it was in good order.

She admitted, “This is one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make.”

Councillor McDermott spoke. “I never let politics get in the way of these decisions that I make. And this one is a hard decision to make as well, basically because it’s in my Ward.” He agreed with Councillor Noyes that the Lincoln County Humane Society “would be a good addition”.

He commented that there have been far too many issues with the local shelter and there has been a problem with flexibility and bringing things up to date.

Councillor Butler spoke next including, “Our procurement department went above and beyond to ensure this process was fair, transparent and very ethical. I’m very comfortable voting in favour of Lincoln County.”

Before Mayor Redekop spoke, he requested four amendments.

The first amendment was, that if a licensed animal was picked up, it would be returned to its home, rather than brought to Thorold where the owner would have to come and pick it up.

The mayor had concerns about licensing and how it is more advanced in Lincoln County. He sought a user-friendly program for those who are not digitally literate.

The third amendment requested was that the animal control officers currently employed at Fort Erie be given fair consideration for employment.

The last amendment the mayor requested was that if Lincoln County receives the contract, it provides some opportunities locally for co-op students and volunteers.

Councillor Noyes commented on the current reporting procedure, recommending an amendment that Lincoln County report similar to how the Fort Erie location has.

In Mayor Redekop’s final statement, he too, admitted this was one of the hardest decisions he’s had to make.

He concluded, “I’m going to support the recommendation as amended, not because I don’t have = high regard for the Fort Erie SPCA, but the reality is, there are issues that need to be addressed. And we can deny that, we can say that it’s not true, but the reality is, it is. And for all the good services that the SPCA has done in Fort Erie, and continues to do, I hope that they will continue to operate their humane programs. I hope that they will provide opportunities for volunteers to participate in their activities.”

He hopes that members of the community will become interested and get involved in the different areas of the SPCA, such as sitting on the Board. He also hopes that the two shelters can collaborate.

Lincoln County received all but one vote.

As of June 1, the Lincoln County Humane Society will cover animal control and humane services, pound services and licensing for the Fort Erie area, using locations in St. Catharines and Thorold.