Background
In the aftermath of the Great Recession period and due to the withdrawal of a partner agency, discussions about Animal Services staffing and revenue models came before the City Council's Policy and Services Committee on May 10, 2012 and the Finance Committee on May 15, 2012. During these Fiscal Year 2013 budget discussions City Council wanted to retain Animal Shelter services in Palo Alto, but directed staff to take immediate steps to reduce costs and increase revenue in an effort to become more self-sufficient and reduce reliance on the General Fund. On July 23, 2012, City Council approved changes to the municipal fee schedule related to animal services and expenditure reductions to reduce costs for the fiscal year. During Council discussions, it was communicated that over the next several years, the program should work towards becoming more self-sufficient.
As Fiscal Year 2013 ended, Animal Services remained dependent on the General Fund even though donations were received and operating hours and clinic services expanded. In Fiscal Year 2014, due to unforeseen staffing issues, the shelter was forced to close the spay and neuter clinic, which negatively impacted revenues. The goal of decreasing reliance on the General Fund was not achieved. On June 16, 2014, the City Council reviewed a Colleagues Memo regarding the Palo Alto Humane Society’s interest in partnering with the City and referred the item to the Finance Committee.On December 2, 2014 the Finance Committee reviewed the Colleagues Memo and postponed discussion of the item until after the City Auditor completed an audit of the services. On March 2, 2015, staff provided City Council with an update report. On April 22, 2015, the City Auditor presented the audit of Animal Services to the Finance Committee. On May 26, 2015, staff presented the Fiscal Year 2016 budget recommendations to the Finance Committee. On June 8, City Council approved the Fiscal Year 2016 budget and directed staff to conduct a review of alternative service models and allocated $250,000 to assist with the assessment and provide funding to transition to a new model for service delivery.
Public Engagement
In an effort to ensure transparency and community input the City conducted several stakeholder meetings during Fiscal Year 2015:
February 25, 2015
1. Welcome & Brief Introductions
2. Discussion about hopes and dreams of the stakeholders
Notes from Meeting
March 4, 2015
1. Finish hopes and dreams conversation
Notes from Meeting
April 9, 2015
1. Review City Auditor's Audit
2. Meet with City Manager
3. Review Fiscal Year 2016 Budget Recommendations to City Council
Staff Reports & Meetings
May 10, 2012 – Policy & Services Committee
May 15, 2012 – Finance Committee
July 23, 2012 – City Council Meeting
June 16, 2014 – Colleagues Memo
December 2, 2014 – Finance Committee
March 2, 2015 – City Council Meeting
April 22, 2015 – Finance Committee
May 26, 2015 – Finance Committee
June 8, 2015 – City Council Meeting
City Auditor’s Animal Services Audit
Fiscal Year 2016:
Staff is implementing City Council direction and working with the community to develop and assess alternative service models. Staff plans to return to City Council by December 31, 2015 with options for consideration.
July 2015:
As of 7/31/15, staff has not utilized any of the approved funding. Staff met with the Friends of Palo Alto Animal Services (FoPAAS) and Palo Alto Humane Society (PAHS) on June 30, 2015 and July 25, 2015. The group discussed a possible Request for Proposal (RFP) to explore alternative service delivery approaches.
August 2015:
As of 8/31/15, staff has not utilized any of the approved funding. Staff completed a draft scope of services and circulated the document for review and comment by various stakeholders. This includes the Friends of Palo Alto Animal Services (FoPAAS), Palo Alto Humane Society (PAHS), and city departments. Based on discussions to date and initial review of the document, stakeholders have suggested additional time be spent on refining the scope of services before issuance to prospective service providers. Staff will revise the scope of services based on feedback from stakeholders and additional consultation as needed. Staff also plans to meet with SEIU in September to review the draft scope of services. The target publish date for a Request for Proposals is now in October.
September 2015:
As of 9/30/15, staff continued to meet with community stakeholders on September 11 and 16. These meetings offered the Friends of the Palo Alto Animal Shelter and Palo Alto Humane Society additional opportunities to provide input into the draft Request for Proposals (RFP). Staff also met with SEIU on September 21. The target RFP publish date is the week of October 12. To date, staff has not spent or committed any of the approved FY 2016 transition funding.
October 2015:
On 10/15/15 the City issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for Animal Services and Shelter Operations with a close date of 12/11/15. Information about the RFP can be found down below. Additionally during the week of 10/12/15, a petition was posted on www.change.org with misinformation. The City issued a press release addressing the petition. As of 10/31/15, staff has not spent or committed any of the approved FY 2016 transition funding.
November 2015:
On 11/17/15, staff held a meeting with FoPAAS and PAHS to discuss further transition and collaboration ideas. As of 11/30/15, staff has not spent or committed any of the approved FY 2016 transition funding.
December 2015:
On 12/11/15, the RFP for Animal Services and Shelter Operations closed. Seven organizations registered on the City’s solicitation website, Planetbids to review the RFP: Placer County Contractors Association, Humane Society Silicon Valley, Friends of Palo Alto Animal Shelter, Pets In Need, Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA, Silicon Valley Animal Control Authority, TracSoftware, LLC. One of the seven organizations, Pets In Need, submitted a response to the RFP. Due to the low response and as part of best practices associated with local government procurement processes, city staff will conduct debrief sessions with the local organizations who registered, but did not submit a response, to better understand current market conditions. The debrief sessions will be scheduled for the month of January. To date, staff has not spent or committed any of the approved FY 2016 transition funding.
January 2016:
City staff conducted debrief sessions with Humane Society Silicon Valley, Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA, Silicon Valley Animal Control Authority, and the County of Santa Clara. The overall theme of the feedback was that the initial RFP was very prescriptive and limited the organization’s abilities to apply their business models and best practices. City staff met with local stakeholders and notified SEIU union about the feedback. In collaboration with the stakeholders, the City re-issued a revised RFP with a broader scope. See below for the revised scope. The new RFP bid due date is February 17, 2016. To date, staff has not spent or committed any of the approved FY 2016 transition funding.
Request for Proposal
The City of Palo Alto is seeking proposals from qualified firms to provide professional services for animal care operations to include, but not limited to, tracking all animals intake, billings, budget monitoring, financial reporting, annual audits, computerized financial system, report preparation, recruiting and training staff, and implementing volunteer services program, community education program, fundraising, facility management, facility improvement, and disaster preparedness. To view RFPs please visit this website and search under Bid Opportunities:
RFP161631 issued on October 15, 2015 and closed on December 11, 2015
RFP161631A re-issued on January 27, 2016
Last Updated: Feb 11, 2016
