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Record of Proceedings

Indianapolis Animal Care Services Board Meeting - October 27, 2025

Other Meetings (A-H) — Monday, October 27, 2025
BodyIndianapolis, Indiana
SessionOther Meetings (A-H)
DateMonday, October 27, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

We can call the meeting to order.

0:02

This is the Indianapolis Animal Care Services Board Meeting for October 27, 2025.

0:09

We'll start with introductions.

0:15

I'm Danielle High and City County Council appointee.

0:18

I'm Chris Roberson, I'm mayoral appointee.

0:21

I'm Brett Krueger, I'm a more mayoral appointee.

0:25

Bailey Renchi board counsel.

0:27

All right.

0:28

Thank you.

0:28

And we'll start with the adoption of the minutes from our last board meeting from September 22nd, 2025.

0:36

Are there any corrections that need to be made?

0:39

The only minor correction is that I'm listed as a mayor oral appointee.

0:44

Which is very minor, but the city county council appointing.

0:52

Okay.

0:53

If there are no other corrections, and then it'll be approved with that correction.

1:00

Should we vote?

1:01

Okay.

1:02

I don't think it vote is typically needed for that, or I mean you can.

1:07

We like have an adopted Robert's rules as part of this board, but then certainly can't vote.

1:12

We have or have not.

1:13

Have not.

1:14

Okay.

1:15

Yeah, no, it's fine.

1:17

I just want to make sure.

1:18

I'm trying to go off of Robert's rules, so I know that.

1:24

And then new business.

1:26

Um we will start with James Finlayson for resolution 0425.

1:32

All right.

1:33

Introducing resolution 04-25 for licensed veterinary services with extending the term of Dr.

1:44

DeBrota's contract by a year.

1:48

No, sorry.

1:52

Second paragraph it mentions Dr.

1:55

I noticed that.

1:56

And uh I'll make sure that is corrected.

2:00

Thank you.

2:01

Thank you.

2:06

Are there any questions other than changing that to Dr.

2:11

Gabroda?

2:12

So is this if it's just uh I I think I can guess your question.

2:17

It is just extending the term of his contract by a year.

2:20

He's indicated that he's stepping away from the shelter for now.

2:24

Uh there is a remaining balance on his contract he could use of about 40% of the contract, I think believe.

2:34

So he will have the opportunity if he has time to come back.

2:40

But it'll let him catch up and also give us just another option.

2:47

So what is the what is the current like vet staffing at IECS when you kind of piece together the Sure.

2:55

We currently have uh Dr.

2:57

De Broda who's actively stepping away, and his contract is about eight hours a month.

3:05

Then Dr.

3:06

Birchfield, uh who we discussed, I think last month or the month before.

3:12

She's coming in to do uh for next month, it'll be twice a week, and then for most of the contract, it's assumed about once a week.

3:22

So and then uh Dr.

3:24

Swarton Truber just indicated she's interested in renewing.

3:28

She's about eight hours a month.

3:32

And I don't think I'm forgetting anybody.

3:36

Uh we had one other vet last year, but I think they may be blanking on one, but total right now, it's about an option for eight hours from Dr.

3:53

S a month and up to 30 hours a month with Dr.

4:00

Birchfield at the moment for her availability.

4:03

We'd happily take more of her time if she's willing to have us.

4:08

So it's something we're actively pursuing more options, and any anyone who wants to have a contract with us will actually will at least have a discussion with meanwhile.

4:26

We've had it posted for it's been most posted most of the time for the last since basically I think last August.

4:36

There's been some time where it's uh needed to be reposted because you can only post I think for 90 days and then you just have to relist it.

4:46

Um so and presumably we just haven't received qualified candidates or can we like we have not received any qualified candidates that are allowed to work in the U.S.

5:01

Yeah, and I think we all understand that the shelters under budgetary constraints.

5:05

I'm sure that plays into the posted salary for it, which the posted salary is determined by this city county grading schedule.

5:14

Uh-huh.

5:14

Um so you the posted range right now is the band of hiring for the current grade for that position.

5:23

So which is difficult to modify, I imagine.

5:28

Very uh very difficult to get positions regraded, but it is a conversation.

5:34

So I would I would love to just pay whatever I can to the vet, and I'll be honest, because of just the volume of services they could provide us.

5:49

Are there any other questions or discussion for the extension of Dr.

5:53

De Brota's contract?

5:57

No.

5:57

No, okay.

5:58

Can I have a motion to approve resolution 04-25?

6:02

Oh motion to approve.

6:04

Second.

6:06

All right, we have a motion and a second.

6:08

So motion carries.

6:10

All right, next is resolution number 2025-5.

6:16

And this is for uh keys to work for an amount of $50,000.

6:21

They are our temp labor contract.

6:25

Um the city has historically dealt extensively with this vendor.

6:31

Um, right now we have one employee on that we use regularly, and there is option to bring in more for short-term work in on occasion if we really need somebody in in the budgetary amount for this contract, but uh it's better to have it and keep it and not need it and not have it.

7:01

What services do they provide?

7:02

It says here veterinary services.

7:05

Uh right now it's uh right now it's temp temporary labor.

7:10

Um right now we have them running the uh one employee running the what should we call it?

7:16

Sorry, the laundry.

7:17

Uh so it's not veterinary services.

7:18

No, ma'am.

7:19

I'll make sure that is fixed as well.

7:21

It doesn't look like this got typo checked very well.

7:26

Um making new ones.

7:30

So I'll make sure that process is changed to review created resolutions in the future.

7:39

So in the past they've there's been surplus labor for uh surplus labor for cleaning as well as laundry is the primary what we primarily use them as for one person who I would ideally like to convert to a full-time but there any other discussions or questions for that contract it just it wasn't completely clear to me in the council approved budget for ICS for 2026, but presumably this comports with that.

8:19

It didn't seem like there were many increases to the budget.

8:21

So there were not.

8:22

This uh well was in the budget and stayed in the budget.

8:26

Um I believe it's in the there's a temporary or contract labor, or it might be under the under professional other professional services line, which is a little vague, but you know, there's a lot that goes under that budget line.

8:47

Any other questions or resolution 05-25?

8:52

Do we have a motion to approve resolution 0525 with the corrections that keys to work is offered is cleaning services, not veterinary services?

9:02

I'll motion to approve.

9:04

Second first and second motion carries.

9:09

All right, finally is uh resolution 2025-6.

9:15

Um, and this is one of our long-term uh vet clinics we've historically worked with.

9:22

Uh this is extending and adding for a year as well as just by the uh $25,000.

9:32

This is a large portion of this is of our bills with this vendor is paid through friends.

9:41

Um so the city directly doesn't pay as much, but this gives us the ability to, and we have a contract of for what the services actually actually are.

9:56

So any questions or discussions?

10:00

uh twenty-five thousand dollars this is a large portion of this is of our bills with this vendor is paid through friends um so the city directly doesn't pay as much but this gives us the ability to and we have a contract of for what the services actually actually are so any questions or discussions no no no no awesome thank you we have a motion to approve resolution 0625 motion to approve second second right perfect first and second motion carries and then do we have any um old business anyone for discussion all right our next meeting will be november 17th is that the new date date Jane right correct okay at 8 30 um that could change i know we had a little questions about um changing our time for board meeting so there will be discussion after this so that could be tentatively changed um and then i call to adjourn if there are no further questions or concerns thank you thank you thank you

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Animal Care████████████████████████████████████████40%
Personnel Matters████████████████████████████████████████40%
Procedural████████████████████20%
Summary of Proceedings

Indianapolis Animal Care Services Board Meeting - October 27, 2025

The Indianapolis Animal Care Services Board convened on October 27, 2025, to review personnel updates, approve vendor contracts, and discuss future meeting logistics. The board members included Danielle High (City County Council appointee), Chris Roberson (mayoral appointee), and Brett Krueger (mayoral appointee). The meeting focused on resolving staffing gaps through contract extensions and securing temporary labor for operational support.

Consent Calendar

  • No formal vote was taken on the September 22, 2025, minutes, though a minor correction was accepted to reflect Brett Krueger's appointment status as a City County Council appointee rather than a mayoral appointee.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments or testimony were recorded during this meeting.

Discussion Items

  • Extension of Dr. DeBrota's Veterinary Contract (Resolution 04-25):

    • A typo in the resolution document initially referenced "Dr. I" instead of "Dr. Gabroda" (contextually corrected to Dr. DeBrota by the presenter), which was noted for correction.
    • The board discussed the current veterinary staffing levels: Dr. DeBrota is stepping away but has a contract option for 8 hours/month; Dr. Birchfield is scheduled to work twice a week next month and then approximately once a week; Dr. Swarton Truber is interested in renewal for 8 hours/month.
    • The presenter noted that despite postings active since August, no qualified candidates legally allowed to work in the U.S. have been secured, potentially due to budgetary constraints and fixed city grading salary bands.
    • Board members expressed a strong desire to utilize Dr. DeBrota's remaining contract balance (up to 40%) to allow him to "catch up" and provide additional hours if available, acknowledging the critical need for vet services.

  • Temporary Labor Contract with Keys to Work (Resolution 05-25):

    • A typo in the resolution incorrectly listed "veterinary services" as the scope; the presenter clarified the services are strictly "temporary labor" for cleaning and laundry.
    • The board discussed the current utility of one employee running the laundry facility, with an expressed desire from a board member to eventually convert this role to full-time permanent employment.
    • The $50,000 contract value was confirmed as consistent with the 2026 budget.

  • Extension of Long-Term Vet Clinic Contract (Resolution 06-25):

    • The board discussed extending and adding a year to a contract with a long-term veterinary partner, with a budget increase of $25,000.
    • It was noted that a large portion of bills with this vendor is paid through "Friends" rather than direct city funds, but the contract solidifies the scope of services.

Key Outcomes

  • Approval of Resolution 04-25: Motion carried to approve the extension of Dr. DeBrota's contract by one year.
  • Approval of Resolution 05-25: Motion carried to approve the keys to work temporary labor contract for $50,000, contingent on the correction of services from "veterinary" to "cleaning/laundry."
  • Approval of Resolution 06-25: Motion carried to approve the extension of the long-term vet clinic contract with a $25,00 addition.
  • Next Meeting Logistics: The next meeting is tentatively scheduled for November 17 at 8:30 PM; however, the board noted that the time may be changed following a specific discussion to occur after the adjournment of the current meeting.

Meeting Transcript

We can call the meeting to order. This is the Indianapolis Animal Care Services Board Meeting for October 27, 2025. We'll start with introductions. I'm Danielle High and City County Council appointee. I'm Chris Roberson, I'm mayoral appointee. I'm Brett Krueger, I'm a more mayoral appointee. Bailey Renchi board counsel. All right. Thank you. And we'll start with the adoption of the minutes from our last board meeting from September 22nd, 2025. Are there any corrections that need to be made? The only minor correction is that I'm listed as a mayor oral appointee. Which is very minor, but the city county council appointing. Okay. If there are no other corrections, and then it'll be approved with that correction. Should we vote? Okay. I don't think it vote is typically needed for that, or I mean you can. We like have an adopted Robert's rules as part of this board, but then certainly can't vote. We have or have not. Have not. Okay. Yeah, no, it's fine. I just want to make sure. I'm trying to go off of Robert's rules, so I know that. And then new business. Um we will start with James Finlayson for resolution 0425. All right. Introducing resolution 04-25 for licensed veterinary services with extending the term of Dr. DeBrota's contract by a year. No, sorry. Second paragraph it mentions Dr. I noticed that. And uh I'll make sure that is corrected. Thank you. Thank you. Are there any questions other than changing that to Dr. Gabroda? So is this if it's just uh I I think I can guess your question. It is just extending the term of his contract by a year. He's indicated that he's stepping away from the shelter for now. Uh there is a remaining balance on his contract he could use of about 40% of the contract, I think believe. So he will have the opportunity if he has time to come back. But it'll let him catch up and also give us just another option. So what is the what is the current like vet staffing at IECS when you kind of piece together the Sure. We currently have uh Dr. De Broda who's actively stepping away, and his contract is about eight hours a month. Then Dr. Birchfield, uh who we discussed, I think last month or the month before. She's coming in to do uh for next month, it'll be twice a week, and then for most of the contract, it's assumed about once a week.

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