Animal shelter schedule switch inconvenient to users
City leaders overreacted this week and scaled back another
department’s level of customer convenience
– without any cost savings – by reversing a decision made early
last year to provide Saturday hours at the animal shelter.
Council members agreed in the 4-1 decision and returned the
animal shelter to a Monday through Friday schedule instead of the
Tuesday through Saturday work week in place. The city had started
offering the weekend service in response to a civil grand jury
report criticizing the traditional Monday through Friday
schedule.
Animal shelter schedule switch inconvenient to users
City leaders overreacted this week and scaled back another department’s level of customer convenience – without any cost savings – by reversing a decision made early last year to provide Saturday hours at the animal shelter.
Council members agreed in the 4-1 decision and returned the animal shelter to a Monday through Friday schedule instead of the Tuesday through Saturday work week in place. The city had started offering the weekend service in response to a civil grand jury report criticizing the traditional Monday through Friday schedule.
Officials used irrelevant data provided by the Police Chief Jeff Miller that noted that since offering Saturday hours, adoptions had decreased and the frequency of animals surrendered had increased.
Those trends, however, are not limited to Hollister or San Benito County. They are happening all across the country due to the poor economy, and the time frame under which shelter officials pulled their numbers fits right in line with the worst of the recession, if we haven’t seen it yet.
Councilman Doug Emerson was the only dissenting member and was correct by doubting the numbers’ relevance. It is too bad, however, that other council members brushed off the possibility and once again accepted a staff member’s perspective as flawless without questioning whether it might be a bit too reactive, or convenient.
Furthermore, council members should have been skeptical about efforts the city took over the past two years to promote the convenience of the Saturday offering, since it had been a major change and all. Miller in touting the level of promotion about the Saturday switch noted how it was mentioned on the city’s website and a note was placed on the door of the shelter. That is not exactly aggressive, and even Emerson noted that the Hollister website gets little, if any, attention. Overall, officials at the very least should have given the idea some more time to work.
It is a shame because about 60 percent of the city’s population commutes outside of the county. About 60 percent of local residents might have to find somewhere else to adopt their pets, where convenience to taxpayers does not take a back seat to the convenience of workers.
Emerson had it right: “I’m still not convinced it’s in the best interest of the public to close on Saturdays,” he said. “I think it’s in the best interest of the staff and the administration.”
