Clark County Commissioners say animal shelter deal imminent

Clark County

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Trish Roehm, right, and others rally at the Clark County Government Building Thursday in an effort to get the Clark County Commissioners to pay the $198,450 currently owed to the J.B Ogle Animal Shelter. Staff photo by C.E. Branham

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September 28, 2012

Clark County Commissioners say animal shelter deal imminent

Young says agreement between county, city of Jeffersonville to be done in 3-5 weeks

By MATT KOESTERS matt.koesters@newsandtribune.com The News and Tribune Fri Sep 28, 2012, 09:01 AM EDT

JEFFERSONVILLE — Amid the mewling of kittens and puppies, the Clark County Commissioners promised at their Thursday meeting that the dispute with the city of Jeffersonville over funding the J.B. Ogle Animal Shelter will be resolved in the next three to five weeks.

“Meaningful discussions are currently ongoing between Clark County and the city of Jeffersonville about the Ogle Animal Shelter that are proceeding to an agreement that will be completed in the next three to five weeks,” said Commission President Les Young, reading from a prepared statement.

Jeffersonville Mayor Mike Moore has appeared several times in recent months, claiming the county owes the city $66,000 for each of the last three years for the operation of the animal shelter. The original contract between the county and city expired in 1999, but the county continued to pay until 2009, when the county stopped paying because of budget problems.

The timing of the announcement coincided with a protest outside the Clark County Government Building about an hour before the meeting began. The protesters chanted slogans as they displayed signs and animals rescued from the shelter.

“Enough!” read one of the signs. “Animals are being slaughtered because you won’t release the funds already allocated to them! Shame on you!”

Another sign accused the three commissioners of being deadbeats for not paying the county’s share.

“We’re trying to get the Clark County Commissioners to pay their fair share of the J.B. Ogle Animal Shelter,” said Trish Roehm with Southern Indiana Animal Rescue. “Right now, the city of Jeffersonville is footing all of the expenses for their animals, and for the last three years, they’ve refused to pay.”

Roehm, the rest of the protesters and several of the smaller animals were present in the meeting room for the public-comment portion of the meeting. When Roehm took her turn at the podium, she sat a basket full of kittens on the commissioners’ table. Roehm estimated 15 animals are abandoned every day, and that the shelter is a bargain to the county at the price of $66,000 per year.

Commissioner Ed Meyer pointed out that the Indiana State Board of Accounts requires a contract to be in place for the funds to be disbursed to the city, but agreed that the county should pay for a portion of the animal shelter.

Commissioner John Perkins agreed that Jeffersonville shouldn’t shoulder the burden of paying for the shelter alone, and that he believed that when he was a member of the Jeff City Council.

When contacted for comment, Moore said he was hopeful that an agreement would be reached.

“If [three to five weeks] is what they say they need, we’re happy to wait,” Moore said, “but we need them to be a part of this in order for it to work.”

PERKINS RESPONDS TO BETHLEHEM-NEW WASHINGTON

ROAD STORY

Perkins responded to a story published in the News and Tribune on Sept. 17 about roadwork he ordered along private property owned by his next-door neighbor, Mike Oles.

Perkins said he and Roehm — who was one of the neighbors quoted in the story questioning the work — had had a bad relationship since his days on the Jeffersonville City Council.

“It goes back seven, eight years when she abused, or was trying to abuse my colleague on the Jeffersonville City Council, Connie Sellers,” Perkins explained. “I cut her off mid-stream, and she left in a huff.”

Perkins read a statement written by the landowner, Mike Oles, which appeared as a letter to the editor in the Sept. 26 edition of the News and Tribune. He also read his own prepared statement before submitting it to the public record.

“I was requested to help shore up some of the shoulder [along New Washington-Bethlehem Road] to try to make it a little safer, as the time for the [Autumn on the River] festival was fast approaching,” Perkins wrote. “I was glad to help.”

Perkins submitted the statement as a letter to the editor to the News and Tribune, and it will run in its entirety in an upcoming issue.

“I know this is an election season and some want to try to embarrass the commissioners’ office.” Perkins wrote. “But this shoulder repair work was helpful to the public who use that field. If we could help make that field, and the surrounding area, a little safer as the festival approaches, it was the right thing to do.”

SALEM-NOBLE ROAD CLOSURE ANNOUNCED

Salem-Noble Road will be closed at the railroad tracks near Ind. 62 between Oct. 8 and 22, said Hyun Lee, county engineer.

The dates are subject to change depending on weather, Lee said.

Lee suggested Shungate Road as a detour.