Fort Smith officials discussing ‘purposely built’ animal shelter
FORT SMITH — City officials are considering an upgraded shelter to house its animal services — something the leaders of the current animal shelter want.
Since operating with city animal services starting in September 2019, Kitties and Kanines has held up to 350 cats and dogs at a time while operating out of its used office space at 4300 Phoenix Ave. The shelter has also on average had 75-100 adoptions per month, according to numbers provided by shelter directors GaeVon Hoover and Brenda Altman.
In a meeting that earned Hoover and Altman praise from the board of directors, City Administrator Carl Geffken said he and others have begun discussions about steps that would be needed to build an animal shelter. Geffken estimated the shelter would cost $1.5 million-$2 million.
A shelter like this could easily hold 600-700 cats and dogs at a time in Fort Smith, Hoover said.
“We want a commitment on a contract, and then we want a commitment that we can build a shelter,” Altman said.
This discussion came as the city is looking at renewing its contract with Kitties
and Kanines on Aug. 31, according to Altman. The city gives the shelter $45,566 monthly for operations, she said.
The shelter entered into a contract with the city after the HOPE Humane Society closed its doors in 2019 because of difficulty managing the facility in the most efficient way possible, Geffken said. While state law does not require municipalities to provide animal services, city officials said stray and possibly feral dogs and cats in public could harm residents and impact perception of Fort Smith for economic development, according to a memo from Geffken to the board.
Since the beginning of 2021, Kitties and Kanines has taken in 1,319 cats and dogs, according to shelter records. They run transports at least three times a month.
The shelter has recently started holding microchip clinics, Hoover said.
“We’ve come a long way in the last couple of years,” she said.
While Geffken said the shelter has been a success, he also said the next step would be to consider “a purposely built shelter.” Geffken said he’s met with the Fort Smith Police Department, which oversees animal services, on the topic.
In addition to the demand for animal space, Altman said she and Hoover need drains and concrete floors in a new animal shelter for power washing and cleaning. Geffken added that the shelter would have “a nice area” for the animals to run outside.
Outside of building a shelter, Geffken recommended the city adopt a flat rate for pet registration in the city. This item was originally supposed to be discussed by the board in April, he said.
Ward 3 Director Lavon Morton said he would like to see the city work with Kitties and Kanines to develop a spay-and-neuter program.
“I do appreciate what you two and all the people at Kitties and Kanines have done and how good you’ve been to work with, and how you’ve really taken what was a really serious, difficult issue when I came on the board in April 2019 and made it so that there’s a great deal of satisfaction,” Morton said.
Morton at the meeting was joined by the rest of the directors — Ward 2 Director Andre Good, At-Large Director Kevin Settle and At-Large Director Robyn Dawson — in his appreciation of Hoover and Altman’s efforts.