Palm Desert City Council - Study Session, July 10, 2025

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[00:03:40] Speaker: We're going to start just a few minutes late. We have a little technical stuff we're working on, but we'll be right back.
[00:05:00] Transcript gap: Gemini did not return transcript text for this 00:05:00-00:10:00 clip. Use the official video for this interval.
[00:10:01] Speaker: You'll see with the new contract for field services have increased approximately 5% annually. And that's in response to their labor negotiations and rate increases for staff.
[00:10:15] Speaker: So what I wanted to do before we get into some of the numbers for sheltering costs, I wanted to give you just this quick snapshot of the number of animals from Palm Desert that have been sheltered annually. And so, at an all-time high was in fiscal year 2017 with 619 animals.
[00:10:36] Speaker: And then as you see for this year, we're actually down quite a bit from where we were the previous fiscal year. So to date, through 11 months, we're at roughly 185 animals.
[00:10:55] Speaker: And as far as our costs, as you'll see, our sheltering costs, while I think it was year two of the contract went up substantially, they have typically gone down or held steady if you look through that nine or ten-year period. Except for this year, we increased substantially to almost $134,000 to date.
[00:11:27] Speaker: One of the significant changes that we saw with this year's billing is they changed the way the billing was being done from intake to outcome-based. And so the way we get billed now is once that animal is, say, adopted, we will get billed for the entire time that it was sheltered.
[00:11:53] Speaker: Before, they were doing it when the animal was being brought in, and it really wasn't giving—we didn't quite understand it, to be honest. This makes much more sense if it's being billed on an outcome. Unfortunately, it is much higher, but it does give a picture of how the costs have increased, as you'll see in these other slides.
[00:12:16] Speaker: The average number of days has also gone up substantially. And so, just looking at last year, we had 200. And so, one thing I wanted to mention before I get into that: you'll notice the numbers are slightly lower when I get into the drill down for dogs and cats. That's because when animals are sheltered, sometimes it includes birds, it has included rabbits. While they're very small numbers, the main focus what I was looking at were the number of cats and dogs. And so, if you see a difference in numbers, that's the reason why.
[00:12:56] Speaker: And so, if you look at the number of days in shelter compared from last year to even this year through 11 months, we're at 3,526 total days in shelter for 165 combined dogs and cats, with an average stay of 21 days in the shelter. Compared to last year, that average number of days was five. The two preceding years, seven and 2021, the average was two days.
[00:13:31] Speaker: Again, this just gives that breakdown of the split between the number of dogs and cats sheltered annually. And what we're seeing is the trend continuing where it's typically two cats—a two-to-one ratio with cats—a large number of cats compared to the number of dogs that are being sheltered.
[00:13:52] Speaker: Interestingly, what we looked at was this year's numbers, July through May, and breaking that out as we're starting to get better data and trying to understand what's going on. When you look at the average number of days that dogs are sheltered compared to cats, it's the reverse. So while cats are still two-to-one, dogs are being sheltered at a much longer rate, at 32 days to 17. So it's double the amount of days that the cats are being sheltered.
[00:14:28] Speaker: I can't tell you right now what that reason is, other than anecdotally, when we hosted a vaccination clinic, we did ask Animal Services to bring some animals that could be adopted potentially, and they did bring one animal—it was an older dog. And so, I don't know if that is the trend, that everyone wants the cute puppy. Adult dogs are great dogs to adopt, but again...
[00:15:01] Staff: Anecdotally, that's all I can say right now. I don't have, um, I don't have those numbers to really look and see the reasons, uh, why, but these are things that we're continuing to, uh, request.
[00:15:14] Staff: So getting into the new contract and rates, as I mentioned, field service rates are being increased, um, 5% each year of the contract, and then the animal shelter rates, the methodology has completely changed to what they're calling a 'piece of the pie' methodology, and I'll get into that at the next slide. But in addition to that, they're adding 38 positions to improve live outcomes and modernizing care. And so, the bullet points below give the breakout of those 38 positions. The total cost is 4.56 million, and that cost is included in that animal shelter rate study, not in the field services rates.
[00:16:02] Staff: And so, the 'piece of the pie'—how it works. Instead of using a flat rate or a per-animal charge, the model assigns each city a proportionate slice of the total cost. So it's not based upon geographic shelter; it's looked at as the entire system. And then the allocation factors are based upon the number of impounds from the municipality, the average length of stay, and then the population served—so the population of the municipality. But it also encourages local programs to really reduce the number of impounds and length of stay. Obviously, if those go down, your costs would go down. And then what it does, it provides an annual oversight where we look at the service demands to ensure that what's being projected for the following year is consistent with this sort of rolling two-and-a-half-year average.
[00:16:54] Staff: And so with that methodology, the county looked at two models. And so this Option A, which is not a consideration, but I did at least want to show what they had ultimately considered. The first model was a full cost-sharing model. And so it essentially, if you will, divided the pie up by all the municipalities in the county, and then everything was assigned accordingly. And so using that option, our cost would have roughly been, rounding up, 331,000 annually for sheltering costs.
[00:17:34] Staff: What Option B was, which was the one that the Board of Supervisors selected and what is our current fee based on—what the county did with this model is they removed all of their baseline operational costs. They looked at it as, regardless of whether we have contract cities or not, we have a cost associated with animal services. So they removed all of their cost associated with that. The remaining is what then was split between the cities. And so looking at using that Option B, it reduced our overall cost for sheltering to, I'll round up, 257,000. So substantially less than Option A, but this was the option that the Board of Supervisors approved, which is what the contract is being based on.
[00:18:30] Staff: And so getting into some of the key components of the contract, they're offering two options for field services. One is a standard plan that provides field services Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. This is what we currently have now. They also have an extended plan that's Monday through Sunday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. When you look at the overall shelter rates over the three-year period, it increases 38%. One thing I wanted to mention: the first year of the contract, as it's phased, these new rates are only for six months. So it starts January 1 through June 30. And so they're phasing the rates in. That's why you see such a higher cost overall.
[00:19:27] Staff: It includes adoption of county regulations for enforcement of county ordinance 630, quarterly billing with annual reconciliation on impounds, length of stay, and population. They're requiring the cities to fund vaccination and microchip clinics within the city, as well as fund spay and neuter clinics within the city, and these are things we already do. They've also are creating a spay and neuter trust fund that they're asking cities to...
[00:20:00] Staff Member: ...consider contributing $5 per licensed animal to go to that fund to help low-cost or free spay and neutering for animals that city residents have adopted.
[00:20:14] Staff Member: So what I wanted to do here is just give a quick snapshot of what our projected costs are for this year, as well as the shelter costs for the overall contract as we compare with our neighboring cities within the valley. And so you'll see where we are. We're at a 38% increase, which is actually the lowest of all the cities in the valley, where you see the significant increase in cost. Most all others are above 50% for sheltering costs.
[00:20:57] Staff Member: And then here we are looking at our three-year contract cost. And so, as you see, shelter services, again, while that overall cost was $256,652 that they have in for year three, the rate for this fiscal year would be $198,000, with the field service cost at $293,960. And then the increase for fiscal year '26-'27, that increase, again, that will be reviewed and adjusted accordingly. And then '27-'28, that's when full cost goes into effect.
[00:21:35] Staff Member: One thing I also wanted to include, if you recall when we brought the budget forward, we included $620,000 for this year's animal services budget. We knew it was going to be substantially higher, and it also included five either spay and neuter or vaccination clinics. And so we potentially have a surplus of about $100,000 to $110,000 compared to what we initially anticipated the cost to be. Again, we weren't sure if it was going to be at a full cost recovery or at a discount rate.
[00:22:15] Staff Member: And so looking at some supplemental programs, and again, this is something that, depending on the input received today, it's something that we would like to really dive into and bring back to Council at a future meeting, but really with the goal of promoting responsible pet ownership and reducing shelter intake. And so the first would be offering a spay and neuter voucher, whether we issue an RFP to local veterinarians. We have a number of new clinics that have opened up in the city, and so whether we can offer free or reduced-rate sterilization services.
[00:22:55] Staff Member: While we have had the spay and neuter mobile clinic here, it is limited to not just, I think, five animals, but they're also at 20 pounds. And so if you have a larger animal, it really doesn't help for a number of our residents. But really looking to help expand that access for families, residents on fixed incomes. We do offer, as you're aware, we offer a reimbursement program, but what we're trying to do is streamline it as best as we can so folks aren't having to pay, submit to us through email copies of receipts, their driver's license. So if we can just streamline the process and work with our local veterinarians to offer a voucher system where they can submit to us directly for payment, it's something we would like to at least explore.
[00:23:49] Staff Member: The second component of that is licensing, looking at ways that we can streamline the process for licensing, for the issuance of licenses. I've seen in some areas where licenses, they actually, while they can come to the city or the county for their pet license, they're able to do it right with the vet. So when you get your rabies vaccination, the cost of that license is also included as part of that. And so, obviously, we offer that reduced rate for seniors and others in the city. And so, again, looking for ways to help streamline so folks are getting those vaccinations and we're contributing to that cost, see if we can work directly with the veterinarians.
[00:24:38] Staff Member: So, one, it reduces administrative time for us processing all of that paperwork, but also saves a lot of time for residents having to snap photos, submit copies back and forth, submit it to finance, issue a check, and go through that whole process. Some of the other additional efforts, as if you recall, some of...
[00:25:01] Staff Speaker: These were discussed about a year and a half ago. I'm really looking to expand our microchipping program and, once we do that, really starting to use GIS to target high-impound neighborhoods so we understand the reason why animals are being picked up if they aren't microchipped, and so that we can start promoting these. If an animal service officer, when they scan the animal, the first thing they do is try to take it back if it is chipped. They will take it to that property, hopefully the individual's home. If they're not, obviously they'll take it to the shelter. But again, we're looking at ways to reduce the number of animals that would have to go into the shelter. And so if we're starting to see in certain neighborhoods where a higher rate of animals are being impounded, these are things that we would ultimately want to roll out programs for and try to work to get animals microchipped. So again, looking at any way we can to reduce the number of animals going into the shelter, hosting outreach events in these areas, again really with the goal of reducing shelter stays and really bolstering our community education and outreach.
[00:26:27] Staff Speaker: One is our senior planning workshops, partnering with senior centers and HOAs to help plan for pet care and emergencies. What we started to see—we don't get the list of all animals that are being impounded, but what we do get are animals that are impounded when an animal control officer is called out for overtime. What we started to do with that is, when we get those sheets, we're starting to track using GIS where these animals are coming from. Again, I can't say for certain, but one of the trends we started to see—again, a very small number, but there were a handful of animals coming from some of our 55 and older communities, which started us to think that perhaps if someone's going into the hospital or hospice care or something else, what's happening is if there's no one to care for them, unfortunately, they're being taken to the shelter. So what we really want to work on is an education program to come up with planning if that happens, what you can do in those cases. I don't know what the answer is right now, but again, as we get data, we want to be able to make more informed decisions and really target what we're doing.
[00:27:58] Staff Speaker: Responsible pet ownership workshops, making sure that if you are going to own a pet, they should be microchipped. The importance of spay and neutering, behavior, licensing, legal responsibilities, and again, that direct community outreach in those high shelter intake areas. So as we collect more data and can start to understand what the issues are, again, start tailoring and targeting our approach. In addition, assist in the marketing of adoption of animals and adoption events. So whether that's highlighting or focusing on Instagram or some of our other social media outlets, certain animals that are being brought in from Palm Desert, how we can help promote and again further reduce the number of animals that are coming from the city.
[00:28:49] Staff Speaker: Reducing those numbers segues right into our data sharing and tracking enhancements. Again, I keep bringing up that study session from 2024, but these were all things that, if you recall, we had discussed that we wanted to see as part of this new contract. And while it doesn't need to be necessarily in the contract, the county has agreed to provide electronic logs of all field pickups. So we'll get those on a monthly basis so we can start tracking those and having them mapped. What we'll look at is—we offered to even develop an app for them to use. Our GIS analyst in development services has developed an app for our homeless outreach team. As we encounter a homeless individual, they're able to tag that and it geolocates it. We're able to do that with other business inspections. So we'll start to collect additional data. Again, we offered to provide that app tailored specifically to field pickups, but...
[00:30:02] Staff Member: They're also starting to use their ESRI or GIS system. And so whatever works best for them or for us, we'll be able to use. So it will be one or the other. We also asked, and they have agreed to provide monthly reporting of addresses of where animals are being—where the residents are from, where they're being dropped off. We had some instances in the past where a number of animals were being brought in from the unincorporated area. However, you know, a lot of the unincorporated areas have a Palm Desert address because of the post office, and so there was an assumption that these animals were from the City of Palm Desert. So we want to make sure that what we're getting billed for is correct. And so they have agreed to provide us with that. But again, it further supports our verification and mapping and understanding where the animals are picked up.
[00:30:58] Staff Member: We did encounter one instance where an animal was picked up for overtime, and it happened because we're mapping it. It was in the unincorporated area of the city. And so our code compliance team brought the new animal control officer in, gave them a map of the city so that it was clear to them what is our municipal boundary and what is not. And then, improving the invoices and reporting. And so we have a clear breakdown of all invoices, the billing methodology, a reference guide for impound and outcome service types. There's multiple terms that were used in the past that we want to make sure we fully understand when we receive these detailed trip sheets regarding explanations of why the animal is being picked up. Included also with overtime, Excel-based ID log, so better tracking and analysis.
[00:31:59] Staff Member: And really, what we asked for was simply put, a track and trace system. And so we should be able to see where an animal—if an animal was picked up at Civic Center Park, we should be able to see that, and then through the entire system, how many days that animal has stayed there and what the ultimate result was. And so we don't have that readily available now, but that's something that they have agreed to provide us. And so, what we want to be able—so as I provide these numbers, I want to be able to tell you we've had X number of dogs between, I don't know, zero, you know, one month and three months, and again, start to make better-informed decisions as we move forward.
[00:32:41] Staff Member: And so for next steps, we would bring a formal item back on August 28th for that City Council meeting as an action item to consider that three-year contract. What we would recommend is staying with the standard plan, Monday through Friday, 7:30 to 5:00. We've already included five clinics. We were initially looking at the two vaccination and microchip clinics as well as three spay and neuter clinics. Of course, we can alter that as we need. We would recommend partnering in the spay/neuter trust fund at $5. Currently, we have about 1,500 animals licensed in the city, and so that's a cost of about 7,500. And so, our basis is whatever we can do. The more animals being spayed or neutered ultimately will result in less animals in the shelter.
[00:33:44] Staff Member: And then regarding the adoption of county animal regulations, staff is already working on amendments to the animal regulations as well as to address backyard breeding specifically, and a number of others. And so, we're working through that, and I think they're anticipating bringing that in the fall, probably October, for consideration. So, some of these things we've already had in place, but that's at least our recommendation for formal consideration on the 28th. And with that, I'll be happy to answer any questions before I—sorry, one more. I did reach out to animal services staff, and since it was a study session, I told them not to worry about coming today. So, if anyone is upset that they're not here, that's on me. But I did ask them to make sure that they would have a representative, and they said they would, when we have formal consideration on the 28th. With that, I'll be happy to answer questions.
[00:34:48] Chair: Great. Thank you. And since this was information for the city to make a decision about a contract, I think that that was a fair decision you made. Are there any questions at this point? Anyone have questions?
[00:35:01] Councilmember: Of course, I have questions. Defer. I will defer questions that have specifically to do with the issues we are dealing with today, the contract issues. Anyone have questions?
[00:35:15] Councilmember: All right. Thank you, Richard. I appreciate that. I've got lots of questions, actually. To start, under this model, it seems to me on the face of it that under the previous contract where we paid a fee based on usage—in other words, the county gave us a bill based on how many animals were in there every night, how many they took up from our city, then they do the math, drop a number, and give us a bill. It seems to me like under this new program, they're coming up with their budget, and that could be whatever they want, and then we get stuck with a portion of that bill. It seems to me that there's no downward price pressure. In other words, there's no incentive for the county to try to cut costs or run efficiently. They can come up with whatever budget they like and then just give each city the bill. Is that an accurate sort of assessment? I mean, for better or worse, I'm not saying one's better or worse, but...
[00:36:15] Richard: Yeah, that was one of the questions we asked specifically: why it wasn't based upon, if we have the Coachella Valley Animal Shelter and that's where we're based, why aren't the costs to run that shelter just split among the cities out here? The response I got was that they don't look at that based on a geographic area, but they look at it as an overall system. What they try to do is, while the vast majority of our animals that would get shelter there are there, if there are openings in other shelters—if it is crowded here, say—they then will move those animals to another shelter. That was at least the answer that I got as far as how they came up with using that methodology.
[00:37:11] Councilmember: Got it. And the funding model is also based on each of the nine Coachella Valley, or I guess eight, cities participating—you know, Desert Hot Springs, Indian Wells, La Quinta, everybody but Palm Springs, who has their own shelter. What happens if one of those cities decides not to participate in this new funding model?
[00:37:28] Richard: I would assume the costs obviously would go up. Now, their costs would somewhat reduce, but overall, again, they're adding 38 positions at a cost of, I think it was, four or four and a half million dollars, and so those would remain. That would just, again, continue to be distributed amongst the contract cities.
[00:37:49] Councilmember: But ultimately, the state mandates that each municipality must have some form of animal services?
[00:37:56] Richard: Correct, whether it's municipal or through the county.
[00:38:01] Councilmember: So, as far as options go, we're being faced with this, or we're being offered this by the county. Options for the city of Palm Desert, if we decide not to participate in this, would be what?
[00:38:17] Richard: Short of opening our own—you know, finding a location and then building and staffing our own animal shelter—I don't know. I know a year ago when we looked at some of the other municipalities, we thought, 'Okay, maybe we can partner with Palm Springs or some of the others,' and it really wasn't... I think, as you see, Palm Springs is over capacity even at their own shelter. What I haven't gotten a full answer on—what was interesting, as you may remember, Desert Hot Springs was going to have their own shelter, and now they are back with the county. So, I don't know to what extent... I'm still pulling some of this information, but I'm not aware if they're fully going to the county for sheltering or if the county is assisting them with some of the overflow when they're crowded. But I believe their shelter may have been run through a volunteer organization, if I'm not mistaken.
[00:39:24] Councilmember: Got it. And if I'm doing the math, it wasn't spelled out directly, but I just want to verify: the five spay/neuter clinics that we're providing cost roughly 20 grand—$20,000 total?
[00:39:34] Richard: Roughly, correct.
[00:39:35] Councilmember: And there's 1,500 licensed animals in our city?
[00:39:38] Richard: Correct.
[00:39:38] Councilmember: Seems low. Then, cats don't need to be licensed, dogs do, right?
[00:39:43] Richard: Dogs, correct.
[00:39:44] Councilmember: Okay, got it. And I think that's all I have for right now, but I'm sure there'll be more as we discuss.
[00:39:49] Councilmember: Any more quick questions? I want to ask a follow-up question, or related to when you mentioned that it seems like we should have a lot more animals that...
[00:40:00] Speaker 1: There are a lot more dogs that are licensed. I'd like to see if there's a plan to go back in retro and look at animals that were adopted, since we know that a lot of times they were given an animal and said, 'Okay, come back to get your license once you've gotten them spayed or neutered.' And if the county did not follow up, the individual took home an unaltered animal. And if they have to pay the fee, then we have to pay a higher licensing fee. But if there's a way for us to do some of that legwork when we say we are now going to offer these clinics, it will ensure that we pick up the slack of what they haven't done. So, I'm glad that you brought up the fact, Mayor Pro Tem, that there really should be a lot more animals that are listed in there. I would also like for us to inquire with the county if they have plans to hire animal behavior specialists, because if we're going to be facing such a substantial increase in staffing and we look at—I mean, obviously we want big change, we're going to need big, big campaigns to do so. But if I'm looking at it and it shows that they're planning to hire new media folks, and that's part of what they're already paying for the consultants under the Hassan contract. So I'm hoping that we can ask them if, as part of the services, we can ensure that there are animal behavior specialists that can properly categorize animals and prevent them from getting on the red list for euthanasia too quickly. Has that come up at all?
[00:41:44] Speaker 2: It has not. I'm sorry. I was—
[00:41:47] Speaker 1: No worries. I know you're taking notes. And do we currently have any licensed kennels or catteries in Palm Desert?
[00:41:55] Speaker 2: That one I'm looking at. I know we do have at least one boarding facility. There may be others. But I've asked staff to—without getting into the discussion on business licensing and our—we need to do additional research because the way they're classified in our system doesn't come out as kenneling or boarding. And so, I am aware of one for sure, but we may have additional.
[00:42:27] Speaker 1: And when we're looking at our service hours, Monday through Friday to 5:00 p.m., what happens if someone calls and has an animal priority one level, meaning either the animal is at a high risk or they're at a danger or risk to a human being? What happens for that call that's placed after five? Do we know that?
[00:42:47] Speaker 2: That would be—I forget how it's classified, the exact term. That would be an overtime call. I know within the contract it has, if it's during normal hours, it's a 30-minute response time. I believe it's a 60-minute response time if it's after those hours.
[00:43:08] Speaker 1: Okay. I'm hoping that we can get those numbers validated since I know that under the previous director, in the past, if you look at the budget for the reports under the county budget, it would show the standard metrics included things like live animal release for adoptions for cats and dogs, numbers of spay and neuter for a calendar year, response time for priority one, and number of licenses issued in unincorporated areas per 1,000 residents. The number of licenses, the number of spay/neutered, and the number of priority one was eliminated. So I think those are important metrics for us to have as we look at what's an adequate level of service for us. So I'm hoping that you can ask them for that number.
[00:43:56] Speaker 2: Definitely will.
[00:43:59] Speaker 1: And one additional question: it relates to the budget that they have, sub-fund 11102. And if we're making sure, if they're going to ask us for trust funds to help spay/neuter, that we look at the money that they already have allocated for that. According to their reports, sub-fund 11102 is currently being used to track state-mandated fine funds. Some funds are held in fiduciary responsibility until owners in violation correct the issue and they come into compliance. If compliance is not met in a timely manner, the funds may revert to use for supplemental spay/neuter education and application. Since I got on the seatback commission, I asked questions, never got an answer. But in 2021, they listed having approximately $160,000. As of this budget year, they list having 532,533.
[00:45:06] Speaker 1: Additionally, they have a sub-fund, which states that it is currently set up to track monetary donations coming into Riverside County Department of Animal Services. Each donation is assigned one of four project codes defined in the animal services website. It says it identifies the donor, identifies which category, and what happens to the funds. Still never got an answer on what those categories are, and if this is a true partnership where we want transparency, can we tap any of those funds? I mean, it's part of why I think the community wants the transparency and it wants that forensic audit, because in 2021 it said approximately 70,000. That's what they reported to the county budget. And for this fiscal year, it says 1.1 million approximately.
[00:45:58] Speaker 1: So they haven't even declared how much is in there. And if we're going to be raising our fees and if it's equitable, absolutely all for it. But I think we deserve to know how much funding is there where we could offset some of these programs from the jump before we invest any more of our funds. Then I have some specific questions on the contract. Is this an appropriate time to ask those as well?
[00:46:24] Speaker 2: This, we're asking questions now. So this is when we're supposed to ask questions.
[00:46:28] Speaker 1: Perfect. Just wanted to double-check. I know that one of the things that had been brought to our attention, and I mentioned to our city manager, assistant city manager, and mayor pro tem as the current rep to the commission, was that we were supposed to have tests for parvovirus and for rabies, and those weren't being conducted. So under description of standard field services, Exhibit B, Section D15 states incoming animal examinations and assessments will be performed within 12 hours. And it lists eight things that they're supposed to do, but at no point does it list that they get tested. And I think that's important because they've had cases of a sick puppy getting put in with others and then those dogs died of parvo. We've also never been able to get a clear answer as to who makes the determination if an animal is healthy and ready for adoption or potentially adoptable, or if they need to be placed on the euthanasia list. That has not ever been disclosed for a fact because it kind of shifts depending on who's answering the question, and I think that needs to be put into writing under Section 21 of the same document.
[00:47:56] Speaker 1: It states that care includes, but is not limited to, providing necessary and prompt veterinary care, etc., defined by Civil Code 1834 and 1846. I think if they're willing to put in very specific details of the Civil Code, we need to have them specify that they are going to comply with SB 785, also known as the Hayden Act, which in May the Superior Court of the State of California stated that they had to comply with it. It's not an optional unfunded state mandate as they had claimed for years. And additionally, to reference the Oyomar Accord, which brings up the details of what is considered humane treatment.
[00:48:45] Speaker 1: In Exhibit B, Section B1—and I can give you all of these sections specifically—it states that animals collected within the boundaries of the city determined, etc. The county may post an animal's picture on the department website to assist residents in reclaiming a lost or missing pet. I think we have technology, and if we're helping them with apps and we're helping bring things up, there should be a way to do that. I mean, that's kind of iffy that they're saying they may post it. If we are going to prioritize reunifications, I think that's an adequate push. We also, as part of our programming efforts, we may want to partner with Petco Love Lost and the Finding Rover programs, which are facial recognition software, and that allows us to be able to help match animals. This is also crucial in terms of any state of natural emergency; should we have a storm and some animal get out, we'll be able to match them.
[00:49:48] Speaker 1: Under Exhibit B, Section A, it states that all county shelters are open admission shelters and are required to accept all strays, abandoned, or...
[00:50:00] Council Member: abandoned animals from the county's area of responsibility. And there have been very troubling stories that have come about from volunteers and within the shelter and community advocates that are being told that they are not accepting kittens. And when we look at the fact that it says that the number of animals is down, is it down because you're turning them away or because you're getting them adopted? And that is a substantial clarification that we need. So, I think that was related after the 500 cat challenge. They got rid of a lot of cats, and now we even received in our email a document where someone sent a screenshot of a conversation with the director, Mary Martin, saying, 'Sorry, we're not doing kittens for the summer.' That's unacceptable if that's what we're putting in writing.
[00:50:56] Council Member: Let's see. And I also would like to know what is the City of Palm Desert prepared to do if the county is not compliant with their contractual obligations, because we can't be all bark, no bite, full pun intended. If we're looking at all of the money that they want us to give them, they have a responsibility to meet that obligation. So I would suggest that as we move down the road with the contract, that that would be something we need to consult legally to then integrate into a contract if there is any sort of way that we can deal with something if we are not satisfied with the result of the contract. So I think that one's one of our down the road and a little easier to answer. Are there any other questions?
[00:51:50] Council Member: You do? Did you have any? No. Okay. Okay, we have a couple more questions.
[00:51:54] Council Member: All right, Richard, I just want to draw a quick comparison with the library services, which was another interaction we had where we're, you know, dealing with the county to provide services for our city. So, in this case, there is no special taxing district or a special fund created through our property taxes to provide animal services. In other words, the county is funding their portion of animal services through just general property taxes, sort of like general fund money. Whereas with the library, they were collecting a specific fund through the property taxes in Palm Desert, and then when we pulled out of the system, we were still entitled to a portion of that money. So, I just want to clarify and get an answer.
[00:52:38] Richard: That's correct. If we were to pull out of the animal services and provide our own, we would not be entitled to any county money to help fund that. We would solely be on our own through general fund money.
[00:52:49] Council Member: That's correct.
[00:52:50] Council Member: Okay, cool. Thanks.
[00:52:52] Council Member: I have some questions. How do we deal with the spay, and do we license every animal we adopt? Every animal that leaves there adopted, are they licensed?
[00:53:11] Richard: No, that's okay. Well, I'm going to go through this process. My understanding is they're supposed to be.
[00:53:19] Council Member: Okay. And would they license an animal that was not spayed or neutered?
[00:53:26] Richard: They should not be. Or if they are, there's a—if you remember, we altered our licensing rates, so they are much higher for animals that are not spayed or neutered.
[00:53:42] Council Member: Okay. So we can add that, I would expect, into a contract that says we are not adopting unless they are spayed and neutered and then, in fact, licensed. So that would guarantee that every animal that left there would be licensed unless they have a medical experience. So what would happen if—what happens if an animal is picked up and not licensed, has not been licensed? I'm just looking at this because is there a carrot and a stick approach? Because it seems like we probably need to cover both angles. So what happens if an animal is picked up that's not licensed?
[00:54:22] Richard: If it's not licensed and not microchipped, then it goes, you know, it just goes to the shelter. If it, again, going back to the importance of the microchip, it could be licensed, but if it doesn't, if it's not wearing an identifier or anything on the collar of the animal, there would be no way to, unless there was a tattoo indicating—I know some shelters, just through past experience, the animals would receive a tattoo in addition to the chip, a tattoo with a...
[00:55:02] Staff: ...specific number identifying that animal where when it was spayed or neutered, but I'm not aware that they do that.
[00:55:09] Councilmember: Okay. So, when they can—and when I went to an adoption fair, I got my two cats, they were spayed, neutered, they were licensed, microchipped, and I got my little, you know, mutts and they're all taken care of. It was at an adoption fair right here at Civic Center Park. So, if an animal is licensed, are they automatically chipped as well?
[00:55:37] Staff: Not necessarily. There wasn't a requirement for animals to be—I know some municipalities it is a requirement for any animal to be licensed and microchipped. But it is not a requirement. It's not a must in the city.
[00:55:57] Councilmember: Okay. So, what I think it might benefit us to take a look at that is, should we say that we don't release an animal unless it—because we know we're not going to adopt our way out of this. We know that we've got to take a multifaceted approach. So, does it make sense then to say we're not adopting an animal unless it is licensed? And if it is licensed, does that mean it has in fact been altered in addition to microchipped, just to, you know, as we go forward, this might be an approach we need?
[00:56:32] Staff: Okay.
[00:56:33] Councilmember: So if we can—and I don't know where they are on that. It just makes sense to me, but I'd like us to look into that, please.
[00:56:42] Mayor: Are there any other questions?
[00:56:46] Mayor: No questions. Okay. And I do have some speaker cards, and just FYI, we welcome them and thank you for them. There is a time at about 4:15 where we provide everyone the opportunity to speak in public session. Okay. So now it's time for discussion on this specific issue.
[00:57:12] Councilmember: Start with comments. It was a great presentation and very thorough. I do like staff's recommendation. In terms of the field services plan though, I would suggest considering Saturdays and Sundays as well on it. And I think it's very important that we're looking at one of the highest cost factors to the city of Palm Desert, which staff said it's in the 55 plus community. So, I think we really need to focus on what we can do to help those high impact areas. And maybe we reach out to the Josh Senior Center or some other senior organizations where it's seniors helping seniors, because I don't think a lot of people realize that some of the dogs or many of our dogs are getting abandoned because people get put into hospice, hospital care, or they pass away. So, I think we really need to focus on it. I know Councilmember Kenttonia went into detail about the contract and we're going to be deferring to our legal team on it. You did bring many issues up. So I would imagine the legal department will be looking into it. And again, microchipping programs are key because if a dog is microchipped, then we know where to return that dog before it even goes into the shelter. So, but all in all, I like the report and support staff's recommendations. Any comments over here?
[00:58:43] Mayor: Yeah, you have a comment.
[00:58:46] Councilmember: Okay. So, I've been our liaison to the animal campus since January, and this has been an ongoing story since before I got there. There was, you know, a lot of advocacy going on, and I can say that in the six months or so that I've been attending these meetings and seeing the response back and forth with staff and the county, that I sort of in a way deferred to some of the advocates who speak every time, show up at every meeting. And it seems the tenor has changed since the hiring of Mary Martin and some of the other staff. Manny's been more attentive to the issue, for sure. And there's sort of three qualities I look for in a public servant, whether it's elected or hired or appointed: accessible, responsive, and hardworking. And Mary Martin seems to have kind of checked the boxes on those. I know she's talked about, for sure, actively looking for two more vets to accommodate the needs of the shelter. The 38 staff, it sounds like we need them. Sounds like the shelter itself is over capacity. There's been, I think, discussion about adding a second shelter down the road. And if you want to...
[01:00:00] Councilmember: Compare and contrast what our choices are here, spending the public money for services that are mandated for our municipality to provide. A half million dollars to cover a city of 53,000 for animal services. To me, when you compare it to what the city of Palm Springs, they have their own in-house animal shelter, is roughly $5.8 million a year just to run that shelter. And that money has to come from within that city. The city gives about 1.4 million out of their budget, which is nearly double to triple what we're maybe going to spend on our Riverside, the county program. So, I think that's a huge consideration. And the other money has to come from fundraising, private organizations, etc., etc. So, that's to me 12 times the amount of money. Are the residents of Palm Springs getting 12 times the level of service? And I think when we're talking about spending public money, I think that's a huge consideration. So, that's where I am right now. I've actually seen a big turnaround in the responsiveness of the county and the animal services specifically. I'd like to give them more time to improve what they do, and I think this is the best use of City of Palm Desert taxpayer money is to continue to participate in this animal services provided by the county.
[01:01:26] Mayor: Okay. Are there any other comments? Are there any other comments?
[01:01:31] Councilmember: I was deferring to a council. Okay.
[01:01:33] Councilmember: Okay. One of my comments, I was very pleased to learn yesterday in the housing commission meeting that the state law has changed. So now there will be dogs allowed in city-owned apartments. Is that correct? I'm not sure, but I think that that was one of the things that I celebrated. So that'll take the ability for more people to adopt animals. I'm deeply grateful to staff for taking the time to do such a deep dive and to be proactive with the solutions that we're proposing, including things that I know have been ongoing suggestions. I'm very pleased to see that their report or the presentation shows and acknowledges that the Department of Animal Services focuses on boarding but must also enhance life-saving programs. That is essential. And I also feel that during the course of this, a lot of times our animal advocates and animal lovers get kind of minimized, and they're the ones that are volunteering. They are the ones that are picking up animals. And if we're going to justify spending money on consultants, we also need to consult with them. And one thing that I think that I would propose, as this is going to be an ongoing matter, I propose a task force or a subcommittee comprised of Mayor Pro Tem and myself as the reps to seek to be sure that we find a way to actively put something into place so that by the time we're ready to finalize our contract, we have dates and everything established to get a clear analysis of our costs. This is a press for accountability. This is a press for accountability, and I think it's a very important first step to get answers to questions that we've had for a long time. Thank you.
[01:03:24] Mayor: Are there any other comments?
[01:03:28] Mayor: Thank you very much. And I know this is something that needs to be addressed, and we're watching. What we've seen recently is really a very solution-oriented approach. We haven't liked everything they've said, they haven't liked everything we've said, but that's how things get done. So, I thank you for all the work you've done, and thank you so much, Mayor Pro Tem, for representing us there and moving this across the finish line. I know we're going to get there, and I know we're going to get there with a good result, not only for—we talk about the public funds—but for our animals in our community. So, thank you very much for that. We can now move to our next study session item, which is the overview of city tree pruning and maintenance.
[01:04:17] Staff: Madam Mayor, I just want to point out that it is 3:30. So you could go to closed session or you can proceed with the study session.
[01:04:24] Mayor: Okay. If we go to closed session...
[01:04:30] Staff: Or you can conduct the closed session after the regular meeting.
[01:04:33] Mayor: Okay. So I'll look to my colleagues. What would you like to do?
[01:04:45] Councilmember: If we're going to get past the study session, does that mean that the speaker cards were going to not be used or that we're telling them they'll have to come back for—
[01:04:52] Mayor: No, I already explained to them it's during public session. Why don't we go ahead and move on to the city, the—
[01:05:01] Speaker: Tree pruning clicker?
[01:05:10] Speaker: We ran long. The news came for you guys.
[01:05:14] Speaker: He left.
[01:05:15] Speaker: They care about those branches in those.
[01:05:17] Sean Mureer: Fantastic. Yes, to bring awareness to the trees. Good afternoon, Mayor and City Council. I'm Sean Mureer, Community Services Manager, and I'm here with Brad Chuck, Superintendent of Public Works.
[01:05:28] Sean Mureer: And we're bringing to you a presentation in response to a council request at a previous meeting regarding tree maintenance. Specifically, the ask was to review the city's current pruning practices and tree maintenance practices, assess the impacts to wildlife, especially with palms, solicit expert input, and then determine whether any changes are needed to the city's tree pruning practices.
[01:05:56] Sean Mureer: And you notice that photo from our Arbor Day previously. So I'll turn it over to Brad Chuck. He's going to talk about the city's urban forest.
[01:06:04] Brad Chuck: Yes. So the Palm Desert urban forest, we have almost 12,000 trees, 120 different species, estimated at 5.6 million. The urban forest property values are determined by species, size, age, and location, and that is due to the ISA schedules of values.
[01:06:26] Council Member: What's ISA?
[01:06:28] Brad Chuck: International Society of Arboriculture.
[01:06:30] Council Member: Thank you.
[01:06:31] Brad Chuck: You're welcome. So, our current pruning practices and maintenance is once a year we prune annual palms and dates. Hardwood trees at least once every 3 years. Special focus on parking lots, playgrounds, dog parks, high-traffic areas. Proper irrigation and pruning is critical for public safety and longevity of the tree.
[01:06:54] Brad Chuck: Note like El Paso dog parks prune once a year. Heavier trees, heavier species get pruned once a year also. So...
[01:07:05] Sean Mureer: Great. And then to speak a little about the environmental considerations, I reached out to our arboricultural services contractor, West Coast Arborists, and their urban biologist, Lette Rios, provided me with a response.
[01:07:18] Sean Mureer: Some of the considerations that the city's mandated by is the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. That's a federal act. And then California Fish and Game Code sections listed there. But they primarily utilize the best management practices on tree care for birds and other wildlife. So the training that our West Coast Arborists team undergoes is fairly extensive. They do annual training, they do weekly safety check-ins, and then they do tailgate meetings before they begin pruning for the day. It starts with a ground survey. So you see the gentlemen there looking up at the tree from the ground. And then once they get up to the level of the palm tree, they do an inspection. They're trained to look for wildlife signs in addition to the actual wildlife itself. So if you see droppings or nest pieces and things like that, they're trained to identify those things. And if there is something identified, they mark the tree with a sign. They do not prune that tree at that time. They'll come back later when the nest is not active, and that is after the chicks have fledged the nest.
[01:08:22] Brad Chuck: So we do have a few areas that we do not trim the palm trees. We do trim the seed pods every year, which is the same annual cost. So the Baja Park, Cahuilla Hills, Desert Willow, Andrada, and also some areas of Ironwood Park.
[01:08:39] Brad Chuck: So the Palm Desert policies is for the municipal code under Title 24 is that all major tree pruning work and maintenance shall be supervised by the ISA, International Society of Arboriculture, or certified arborist. All pruning shall be performed with the overall goal of providing maximum tree canopy. And no topping of trees—it is prohibited—and all significantly injured, decayed, or dead trees found to be, excuse me, significantly damaged or improper pruning shall be removed and replaced. All maintenance work to be performed shall be in accordance with the City of Palm Desert's landscape maintenance guide. Second item up there is the Palm Desert landscape maintenance guide. It is on our website, it's available to the residents. And then once again, all of our pruning techniques is standardized by the ISA.
[01:09:41] Sean Mureer: And the other subject matter expert that we reached out to and was specifically requested was the University of California, Riverside—Go Highlanders!—Palm Desert campus. And when we contacted Lynnu, Dr. Lynu, who's an assistant research ecologist, and she provided a response via email, but this is just kind of a...
[01:10:01] Staff: Highlight to some of her key points there. The fan palms that are in the city do provide habitat to birds and other wildlife. You know, there is competition between wildlife and human interaction, which we're all aware of. Those palm tree skirts do provide additional shade and opportunities for bird watching. So that is a recreational activity that is supported by less pruning. But there is a balance to be achieved between all of this because there is also a safety concern with having unpruned trees, especially in parking lots and parks, and we'll get into that a little bit later. But then she also deferred to arborists and urban forest management professionals to maintain the areas within the city where we have trees planted. So that was the feedback from UCR. But in regard to public safety, tree health is very important. It's a key component to managing an urban forest. It reduces the instances of broken branches, it reduces the poor root systems, and then if you have dead plant material falling, it can be a danger to people under it, obviously, which can be exacerbated by weather events, wind and rain. So if you have a poor root system and a heavy rain, that root system is no longer going to hold, and then if the tree is top-heavy, it can more easily blow over in a windstorm. So you can see an example of that that just happened a few months ago on Magnesia Falls. This wasn't our tree, but we did respond to it to clear the road. So you can see that that root ball is not very well established. The tree was very top-heavy and unpruned, so it came down pretty quickly. And then in high-sensitivity areas, West Coast arborists do have specialized training for that, and those are parks and playgrounds, obviously, for the increased safety factor; parking lots, because of the liability to parked cars; and then riparian areas for the opposite reason, where less pruning can be better because it provides the habitat for nesting birds.
[01:12:07] Staff: So in conclusion, the city does maintain the urban forest in accordance with ISA standards. Proper maintenance is critical for public safety, and there's that balance to be achieved by designating areas with limited pruning for wildlife and habitat, and we'll continue to manage these practices in the city. So at this time, we're not recommending any changes to the current practices, but we do welcome the council's feedback. Thank you.
[01:12:33] Mayor: Thank you very much. And we have more trees in Palm Desert per square acre than any other city in the Coachella Valley. For that, we're proud. Are there any comments or questions?
[01:12:46] Councilmember: I have a question. I think when we had the original discussion, part of that was that we could either share this material or try to see if we could incentivize HOAs or any other group to take this under consideration to not over-prune. Is that something that is still being contemplated?
[01:13:06] Staff: Yes, good question. And that is something that Public Works is still developing, and we do have our first presentation with those materials to the Rotary Society, and that is, I believe, August 12th. So we'll include information there on stormwater issues, how to report issues in the public right-of-way anywhere in parks, streets, what have you, and then also pruning practices will be covered there as well.
[01:13:31] Staff: You're welcome.
[01:13:33] Mayor: Any other questions or comments?
[01:13:35] Councilmember: I have a question. Is it against state law to top a tree? I, for some reason, I'd heard that.
[01:13:42] Staff: It is against the city's municipal code, but we'd have to do the research for the state law.
[01:13:47] Councilmember: And when it's against our code, is that on private property as well or just public?
[01:13:52] Staff: On private and public, yes.
[01:13:54] Councilmember: And so what are the repercussions? When's the last time we cited somebody for topping a tree?
[01:14:00] Staff: I would need to check with code enforcement on that, but I can get back to you.
[01:14:03] Councilmember: Yeah, just out of curiosity. One of the things I think that you guys do excellent is the pruning. And you could tell the difference between a trained arborist trimming a tree and a gardener that just comes in and lops it off. And, you know, you guys are doing a great job.
[01:14:21] Staff: Thank you.
[01:14:24] Mayor: Any other questions or comments?
[01:14:26] Councilmember: No. Thank you for what you're doing.
[01:14:29] Mayor: Thank you. Okay. So, we will at this point adjourn to closed session, and we will be back shortly.
[01:14:55] Mayor: Any public comments? Closed session.
[01:14:58] City Clerk: No public comment, Madame Mayor.
[01:14:59] Mayor: Thank you very much.