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Valley River Humane Society asks Cherokee County for $252,000; commissioners question capacity and guarantees
Summary
Valley River Humane Society representatives asked the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners on May 14 for $252,000 in annual funding plus a $38,540 fencing grant and a waived $535 permit fee. Commissioners raised concerns about shelter capacity, a strict adoption policy and the shelter's inability to guarantee acceptance of surrendered county animals; staff will add the funding request to the upcoming budget vote sheet.
Don and Patty Reynolds, representing the Valley River Humane Society, asked the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners on May 14 to include $252,000 a year in the county budget and to cover two specific items: $38,540 for a fencing project and a $535 building permit fee waiver. The Reynoldses said VRHS would remain a no-kill shelter and would accept dogs and cats when space is available, but they also told the board the shelter cannot guarantee acceptance of Cherokee County surrenders.
The request put shelter capacity and county spending under scrutiny. The Reynoldses reported a shelter capacity of 125 dogs and 125 cats, a typical daily population of about 150 dogs and 80–100 cats, and a surrender waiting list spanning three pages. They asked for annual operating support of $252,000 to address those pressures and sustain services.
County commissioners pressed the shelter for more detail about its operating model and finances. Commissioners said the organization's current business model appears not to be working and questioned a strict or selective adoption policy that could limit public benefit. The board requested VRHS's financial statements before committing taxpayer funds.
Commissioner Cal Stiles suggested budgeting the full $252,000 but initially paying $126,000 over the next six months and scheduling a review in five months to reassess the numbers and the shelter's capacity to serve Cherokee County animals. The county's finance office was directed to add the VRHS funding request to the commissioners' upcoming budget vote sheet; no formal appropriation or final vote occurred at the special meeting.
Next steps: VRHS was asked to provide financial statements, and commissioners plan to review the budget item during the county-wide budget process and at the five-month follow-up. No formal funding decision was made at the May 14 meeting.
