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Volunteers and shelter staff urge council to fund additional animal care positions and finalize organizational move
Summary
Speakers including volunteers and Animal Care & Control representatives urged the council to approve additional staff positions and to have the Animal Care & Control director report to General Services for streamlined decision-making; speakers said proposed budget did not include requested positions.
Several residents and volunteers urged the Charlotte City Council to provide more staff and funding for Animal Care & Control (ACC) and to complete a proposed organizational change placing the department under General Services.
Kimberly (Kim) Wade, a longtime volunteer and foster with the city’s animal care program, thanked council for proposing funding for a shelter expansion and adoption center and for moving Animal Care & Control under General Services. But Wade said the additional staff positions requested by ACC were not included in the proposed budget and warned that intake is rising while the shelter expansion remains years away. She said the missing positions were “urgently needed to keep saving lives.”
Jennifer De Ceia, speaking later, echoed the request and asked that the ACC director report directly to the General Services director to reduce bureaucracy and speed life-saving decisions. De Ceia said current staff are “stretched thin” given record-high animal intake and again urged the council to include the requested positions.
Council response
Council members thanked the speakers and noted the organizational move. Several council members said they support the shelter expansion and want to ensure that staffing needs are addressed during budget deliberations. Some asked staff to report back on whether the ACC director will report directly to the General Services director following the organizational change.
Why it matters: Speakers argued that bolstering staffing for animal care will protect animal welfare and reduce downstream costs to the city. The organizational change was framed as a measure that could improve responsiveness by reducing administrative layers.
Speakers quoted: "These staff are urgently needed to keep saving lives," said Kimberly Wade, a longtime volunteer and foster with the city’s animal care program.
"We're also hopeful that when the transition of General Services is finalized, the animal care and control director will report directly to the General Services director," said Jennifer De Ceia, speaking on behalf of Animal Care & Control supporters.
What to expect next: Councilmembers asked staff to confirm reporting relationships and to clarify staffing requests during the budget process; advocates said they will continue to press for the additional positions to be added to the budget.
