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Longview approves one‑year agreement with Southwest Washington Humane Society for animal sheltering
Summary
After debate over procurement process, the council authorized a one‑year contract with the Southwest Washington Humane Society to provide animal sheltering services while staff works with regional partners on a longer-term solution.
Chief Chris Huda and city staff presented a one‑year contract with the Humane Society for Southwest Washington to provide animal sheltering services for Longview. Staff framed the agreement as an interim solution following staffing and cost changes at local humane organizations and as a bridge while the city collaborates with neighboring jurisdictions on a sustainable regional approach.
Chief Huda said the agreement removes the city’s immediate need to house stray or impounded animals locally and reduces pressure on the remaining animal control officer. He described the city’s prior arrangement — where Calais County Humane or other providers charged a per-animal fee (recounted in discussion as $300 per animal) — and said the new one‑year contract moves to a different payment structure (a flat fee rather than per‑animal billing, as presented to council). He also said staff had reached out to multiple rescue and shelter organizations in the region and found limited local capacity.
Several council members raised concerns that staff did not run a formal request‑for‑proposal (RFP) or request‑for‑qualifications (RFQ) process before negotiating the one‑year arrangement. One council member said they would vote no on that basis; others said the timeline required a stopgap solution to avoid a service gap and that staff should pursue a competitive process and regional collaboration during the contract year. The chief said staff expects to start in March on a longer-term cooperative plan with Kelso, Cowlitz County and other local jurisdictions.
A motion authorizing the city manager to execute a one‑year agreement with the Humane Society for Southwest Washington and directing staff to work with neighboring jurisdictions passed. The vote was recorded by voice; the mayor called the motion carried after an opposed vote was noted on the record.
Why it matters: Without an interim shelter arrangement, the city’s animal control enforcement capacity would be limited. Staff said rejecting the contract would risk having no place to take animals and could require suspension of animal control enforcement.
Next steps: Staff will begin regional coordination in March and return to council with options for a sustainable cooperative solution for animal control and sheltering services.
