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As a donor to various city entities in Great Falls, I am deeply troubled that a private organization (The McClean Cameron Animal Adoption Center) is able to stop funding and expansion to an existing city building. It is also troubling and I believe a conflict of interest that Commissioner Robinson be allowed to vote on this agenda. It is public knowledge that he is a past director of The McClean Cameron Animal Adoption Center and donated $250,000 dollars to help pay off their loans. Commissioner Robinson and Commissioner Moe have also been having private meetings with The McClean Cameron Animal Adoption Center not subject to public notice or open meeting laws, however have been unable to bring anything to the table. Only rumors. The fact that no shelter representatives are allowed is unacceptable. In October of 2016, Owen Robinson proposed a combining of our two entities and gave Deputy Manager Greg Doyan 60 days to respond. I believe this same format should be met and Commissioner Robinson and Commissioner Moe should have something substantial to present at the May 7, 2019 commission meeting. The fact that Commissioner Robinson wants 8 months to format a plan and postpone this initiative until September is unacceptable to the community of Great Falls, Mt. Our community worked very hard to fundraise for a project that has been in the works for the last 6 years.
I would also like to point out that Commissioner Moe stated that the GFAS was duplicating services. That in fact is not the case at all. The only common service that we have is in adoptions. The GFAS is an open municipality that takes in a variety of stray animals that include but are not limited to reptiles, fowl (chickens/ducks), peacocks, rabbits, ferrets, rats, birds and even a pig and fish at one point in time. The McCAAC only takes in healthy cats/dogs. All other are turned away. Some of the stray animals that enter the GFAS included healthy, injured, abused, elderly, behaviorally challenged, and feral, etc. The McCAAC takes none of these. The GFAS took in approx. 163 feral cats in the last two years and yet Commissioner Robinson says we do not have a feral problem. The GFAS also houses animals brought in by Animal Control that are seized, including dangerous animals, abused animals, and even unclaimed bite cases. Again, the McCAAC does not handle any of this. I would like to point out that options are not always a bad thing. We have two hospitals, does Benefis need to close its doors because the GF Clinic offers the same services. Can we not have a Lowes because we have Home Depot, or no Chili's because of Applebees? The idea of not having options is ludicrous. It is very sad that Commissioner Moe knows so little about one of the city entities she is governing.
I would hope that the City Commission and Mayor award contract so that the Great Falls Animal Shelter can move forward with the expansion that the city community has worked so hard for.

Thank you for your time.