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Joint Animal Services presents revised shelter plan, estimates multimillion-dollar funding gap
Summary
Joint Animal Services told the Tumwater City Council that intake and field responses rose in 2024, average shelter stay fell to seven days, and a redesigned facility of roughly 20,000 square feet would cost tens of millions of dollars; the agency outlined possible funding sources and next steps but no council action was taken.
Joint Animal Services executive director Sarah Hawk updated the Tumwater City Council on May 6 about operations, volunteer contributions and a revised facility plan that agency staff say will improve operations but require major new funding.
Hawk told the council that volunteers provided nearly 5,000 hours in 2024 and that those efforts “saved our organization over $200,000 in additional labor and help around the shelter.” She said the agency’s average length of stay for animals fell from 11 days in 2023 to seven days in 2024, and that the shelter handled about 3,305 intakes last year.
The presentation placed the Joint Animal Services service area across four jurisdictions: Thurston County (46% of calls/intake), Olympia (25%), Lacey (21%) and Tumwater (8%). Hawk described operational changes that she said reduced length of stay, increased positive outcomes and allowed the shelter to perform more complex veterinary care…
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