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Record of Proceedings

Mayor and Denver City Council Meeting - December 17, 2024: Animal Shelter Presentation

Mayor-Council Meeting — Tuesday, December 17, 2024

BodyDenver, Colorado

SessionMayor-Council Meeting

DateTuesday, December 17, 2024

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 32:35

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0:00

To this meeting of the mayor and Denver City Council.

0:03

At this weekly session, city agencies brief the mayor and council members on various proposals and projects across the city.

0:11

This meeting of the mayor and city council members begins now.

2:25

All right.

2:34

Chaos rains in the streets.

2:39

We are live, y'all.

2:39

If you go ahead and grab a seat, we will uh open our mayor council meeting.

2:44

Uh thank you so much for being here.

2:46

We'll start with introductions this morning.

2:48

Uh, this is our last mayor council of twenty twenty four.

2:53

Um, and so we will start with the distinguished gentleman to my right.

2:56

Thank you, Mayor, and seasons greetings, however, you celebrate.

3:00

And uh my name is Paul Cashman.

3:02

I represent District Six on Denver City Council.

3:06

Uh the district with, I think, maybe the deepest herd of fine cats, dogs, that's excellent.

3:19

Things to brag on, you might be right.

3:21

That's a little sorry.

3:22

Good morning, Amanda Sawyer, District Five.

3:27

Uh, good morning, everyone.

3:28

Set Anna Gonzalez Cutters, one of your council members at large.

3:32

Chris Hines, Denver's Perfect 10, home of the highest artificial peak in this money.

3:40

Okay.

3:42

Good morning, Darrell Watson, representing the fine district nine.

3:46

Good morning, everyone in Madisonville, Northwest Denver District 1.

3:50

Great.

3:50

Well, thank you all for being here and for joining us.

3:53

So I want to open up first with announcements.

3:55

If there are announcements folks have for fellow members or for the viewing audience at home, I want to start there.

4:00

Councilman Hines.

4:01

Uh thank you, Mayor.

4:02

In uh anticipation of um our presentation this morning.

4:06

I and uh thanks to the um inspiration from last night from Councilmember Watson.

4:13

I have a uh a poem.

4:15

Well, maybe not as long as uh Councilmember.

4:20

So um here we go.

4:22

Uh within these walls, the lost and weary wait.

4:25

Uh, for love to lift them toward a kinder fate.

4:28

A dog was scarred, but hopeful eyes may find a home that sues, restores both heart and mind.

4:35

The shelter humes with staff who give their care to mend, protect, and heal each soul laid there.

4:42

From stories read to calm their restless night to vaccines shared, ensuring health and light.

4:48

For every paw that wanders far from home, this shelter stands a haven where they run.

4:54

I also want to give a shout out to William Shakespeare, who uh uh created I am a pentameter and used that spirit to uh to greet the call.

5:02

So thank you.

5:09

Does anyone else have an animal shelter inspired subject that they would like to read?

5:13

Uh has been raised.

5:16

Any other announcements this morning for some councilman?

5:19

Thank you.

5:20

Um thank you, Ms.

5:21

Mayor.

5:21

Um thank you.

5:23

Councilman Hines.

5:24

Um, you know, I forgot yesterday because there was so much going on.

5:27

I forgot to wish one of my um council aides, my senior council aides, uh Emmy O'Choa, a happy birthday.

5:35

She had a birthday just on last Thursday, so it was like not during all the council meetings.

5:40

So I just want to wish her a happy birthday.

5:42

So hopefully she's listening.

5:44

Happy birthday, Emmy.

5:46

Any other announcements?

5:49

All right, great.

5:50

Well, we know uh you all have busy accounts schedules, lots of hard things to solve.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Animal Welfare█████████████████████████████████████████████76%

Procedural████████13%

Public Engagement████6%

Infrastructure and Engineering███5%

Summary of Proceedings

Mayor and Denver City Council Meeting - December 17, 2024: Animal Shelter Presentation

This was the final mayor-council meeting of 2024, held on December 17, 2024. The session included opening announcements and a featured presentation from the Denver Animal Shelter (Denver Animal Protection), followed by a question-and-answer period with council members. The shelter director, Melanie Soble, along with shelter manager Aaron Weiss and animal care attendant Jenny Kane, presented on the shelter's operations, challenges, and upcoming initiatives. Two adoptable animals were brought to the meeting: a 10-year-old Pomeranian-Chihuahua mix named Polar and a 14-week-old kitten named Circe, along with two other kittens.

Announcements

Councilman Chris Hines recited a poem about the animal shelter, using iambic pentameter, inspired by Councilmember Watson's prior poem.
Councilwoman Amanda Sawyer wished her senior council aide Emmy Ochoa a happy birthday (birthday was the previous Thursday).

Discussion Items

Denver Animal Shelter Presentation (Melanie Soble, Director of Denver Animal Protection):
- The shelter is an open admission shelter, taking every animal that comes to its doors (sick, injured, abused, lost) without turning any away. This is contrasted with no-kill shelters that can limit intake.
- Statistics: The shelter is on track to intake nearly 10,000 animals in 2024, a 43% increase compared to 2019 (pre-pandemic) and a 13% increase from the previous year. This equates to roughly 30 animals per day.
- Owner surrenders have increased 148% compared to 2019, attributed to other shelters adopting limited-admission policies, charging surrender fees, and socioeconomic factors like inflation, pet care costs, and housing instability.
- Services provided: free spay/neuter for underserved communities, emergency medical care (veterinary team on-site seven days a week), community outreach to encampments, humane education, and a foster care program.
- The shelter has 400 volunteers, including a junior volunteer program allowing children aged 8 and above (with a parent) to volunteer; ages 16+ can volunteer alone.
- Adoption specials are offered monthly; city employees receive one free adoption.
- A nonprofit fundraising arm is being explored in collaboration with Councilwoman Torres, but is currently in a holding pattern.
- The shelter is in the initial design phases of a facility expansion (adding a second story to separate cats from dogs, preserving green space) with architectural firm Animal Arts.
Q&A and Council Discussion:
- Councilman Chris Hines asked about the recent Aurora ballot initiative to repeal its pit bull ban and about a mid-level veterinary practitioner proposal. Director Soble expressed support for ending breed-specific legislation (BSL), noting that dangerous dog laws are more effective and that pit bull bans are not based in science. The mid-level practitioner (between a registered vet tech and a veterinarian) could help address the nationwide veterinary shortage.
- Councilman Paul Cashman asked about the impact of Denver ending its pit bull ban. Soble reported no noticeable increase in bites or influx from elsewhere; the permit program is ineffective and resource-intensive, with subjective breed identification.
- Councilwoman Amanda Sawyer asked about youth volunteering; Soble confirmed the junior volunteer program starts at age 8 with a parent.
- Councilwoman Torres asked about the facility expansion and the status of the nonprofit fundraising arm. Soble confirmed the expansion is in early design and the nonprofit arm is stalled but desired.
- Councilman Hudson commented on the term "pit bull" not being a recognized breed, and noted that the current inspection/registration system is not scientifically based. He asked if Soble would support eliminating the pit bull permit process; she expressed strong support for removal.

Key Outcomes

The council received the presentation and discussed several policy issues, but no formal votes were taken during this informational session.
Council members expressed interest in touring the shelter and exploring support for the nonprofit fundraising arm and facility expansion.
The council encouraged residents to consider adopting pets from the shelter, especially during the holiday season.

Meeting Transcript

To this meeting of the mayor and Denver City Council. At this weekly session, city agencies brief the mayor and council members on various proposals and projects across the city. This meeting of the mayor and city council members begins now. All right. Chaos rains in the streets. We are live, y'all. If you go ahead and grab a seat, we will uh open our mayor council meeting. Uh thank you so much for being here. We'll start with introductions this morning. Uh, this is our last mayor council of twenty twenty four. Um, and so we will start with the distinguished gentleman to my right. Thank you, Mayor, and seasons greetings, however, you celebrate. And uh my name is Paul Cashman. I represent District Six on Denver City Council. Uh the district with, I think, maybe the deepest herd of fine cats, dogs, that's excellent. Things to brag on, you might be right. That's a little sorry. Good morning, Amanda Sawyer, District Five. Uh, good morning, everyone. Set Anna Gonzalez Cutters, one of your council members at large. Chris Hines, Denver's Perfect 10, home of the highest artificial peak in this money. Okay. Good morning, Darrell Watson, representing the fine district nine. Good morning, everyone in Madisonville, Northwest Denver District 1. Great. Well, thank you all for being here and for joining us. So I want to open up first with announcements. If there are announcements folks have for fellow members or for the viewing audience at home, I want to start there. Councilman Hines. Uh thank you, Mayor. In uh anticipation of um our presentation this morning. I and uh thanks to the um inspiration from last night from Councilmember Watson. I have a uh a poem. Well, maybe not as long as uh Councilmember. So um here we go. Uh within these walls, the lost and weary wait. Uh, for love to lift them toward a kinder fate. A dog was scarred, but hopeful eyes may find a home that sues, restores both heart and mind. The shelter humes with staff who give their care to mend, protect, and heal each soul laid there. From stories read to calm their restless night to vaccines shared, ensuring health and light. For every paw that wanders far from home, this shelter stands a haven where they run. I also want to give a shout out to William Shakespeare, who uh uh created I am a pentameter and used that spirit to uh to greet the call. So thank you. Does anyone else have an animal shelter inspired subject that they would like to read? Uh has been raised. Any other announcements this morning for some councilman? Thank you. Um thank you, Ms. Mayor. Um thank you.

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