Kelsey Landis | Post-Dispatch
CLAYTON — St. Louis County Executive Sam Page has asked the County Council to approve spending another $18 million in NFL Rams settlement money on retrofitting the county animal shelter.
The request comes a week after Page asked the council for $3 million for drainage, heating and cooling systems, and housing for animals. The new request seeks more for those same items, plus some new things, according to a letter from Page to the council dated Friday.
It would pay for retrofitting veterinarian offices and exam rooms; making more space for large kennels; replacing the heating and cooling system; increasing water and sewer capacity; and finding a new home for the county’s pest control division, currently located in the shelter.
People are also reading…
More space for animals is critical, Page said in his letter. Because of overcrowding problems, officials have said, the shelter last month failed to obtain its state license to operate as required by Missouri law.
If the council approves the project, planning will begin this year, and construction will start next year, according to Page’s letter.
The shelter has in recent months faced problems with licensing, an outbreak of parvovirus, the resignation of its veterinary director and the departure of the Animal Protective Association, which ran the shelter for two years.
The council has sought answers to how problems at the shelter multiplied so quickly after the APA left. But members weren’t satisfied with the responses they received at a hearing last month.
The council voted to subpoena 11 people, including county health department staffers, plus state and APA officials.
State officials testified at a hearing on Tuesday and said they will inspect the shelter again on June 30.
The county executive’s new funding request also comes after a state audit dinged the council for using the Rams settlement money “without a formal process.” The council should develop a formal plan for how to use the remainder of the funds, the state auditor’s office recommended in its report.
The county received $169.3 million from the $790 million settlement in 2021 of a lawsuit over the Rams’ departure for Los Angeles.
The council hasn’t yet discussed the county executive’s first request for $3 million for the shelter. The council meets again Tuesday night.
St. Louis County regained operation of the animal shelter and adoption center, and during an open house talked of plans to offer fostering and improve the volunteer experience on Feb. 24, 2025. Video by Allie Schallert, aschallert@post-dispatch.com
St. Louis County said there was no euthanasia plan at shelter. But there was.
Missouri could seek to shut down St. Louis County animal shelter, official says
St. Louis County opens investigation into outbreak at dog shelter
Missouri denies animal shelter license to St. Louis County after failed inspections
St. Louis County reopens animal shelter after containing parvovirus outbreak
Contractor quit running animal shelter after St. Louis County rejected some expenses
Volunteers are ‘optimistic’ after St. Louis County takes over animal shelter
Health director promises a better St. Louis County animal shelter despite volunteer pause
0 Comments
Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox!
Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.