Bonner to alter pet permit fee

Archive for Wednesday, April 11, 2012

April 11, 2012

The Bonner Springs City Council Monday decided it should alter its recently changed pet permit policy.

In workshop prior to the regular meeting, the council discussed the matter due to several members of the public complaining about the cost for pets that are not spayed or neutered.

The city’s spay and neuter policy recently was changed to require that those who do not get pets spayed or neutered must purchase a $100 breeder’s permit when licensing their pets.

Council members agreed with the purpose behind the change — encouraging pet owners to spay and neuter to control overpopulation of pets — but they thought the increase was too great and there wasn’t enough public awareness of the impending change.

The council supported reducing the fee to $25, reimbursing the six residents who have paid the cost thus far, and slowly increasing the fee at $10 increments in future years.

Council member Rodger Shannon was absent from the workshop discussions. Council members George Cooper and Racheal Haas were absent from both the workshops and regular meeting.

In other business, the council:

• Discussed, in workshop, participating in a Kansas Department of Health and Environment loan program to fund water system improvements. The city can borrow up to $1 million, and the loans have a lower interest rate than the city could get through the bonding process. The council approved applying to use the funds for the rehabilitation of Well No. 5, estimated at $125,000, and a project to meet the state mandate on backwash, estimated at $150,000. Use of these funds will allow the city to use the funds it had budgeted for Well No. 5 to repair waterlines on Sheidley, Cornell and Emerson streets.

• Heard Mayor Clausie Smith proclaim April 8-14 as National Library Week and April 15-21 as National Volunteer Week.

• Approved all items on the consent agenda, with Council member Harrington abstaining from check No. 116559 in the claims for city operations, as it was paid to his family’s business.

• Approved the delinquent property policy that will place property with delinquent taxes or special assessments on a tax sale or in the Wyandotte County Land Bank. Rita Hoag, city clerk, said there are properties that are eight to 10 years behind in property taxes, and 66 properties are delinquent in some form or another. In June, the county will provide a list of properties that are more than three years delinquent, which will be placed in a tax sale to try to get them back on the tax rolls. Hoag said most of the properties are undeveloped with no buildings, so no one would be removed from their homes.