Mending fences on animal shelter

Coeur d’Alene Animal Shelter volunteers returned $2,700 to the Watson Agency on Wednesday, clearing up a misunderstanding that closed the shelter for two days and put the fate of the animals in jeopardy.

The dispute was sparked when volunteers decided to turn the animal shelter into a nonprofit agency so it could attract more donations from local residents and businesses uncomfortable giving to a for-profit business like Watson Agency.

Watson Agency, which has contracts with Coeur d’Alene, Rathdrum and Spirit Lake, for animal control, opened the for-profit shelter in May because it needed a place to house stray dogs and cats.

The Kootenai Humane Society used to take all the stray animals Watson Agency collected, but the facility became overcrowded when it adopted a no-kill policy. That’s when the Coeur d’Alene security agency, owned by independent Kootenai County sheriff candidate John Weick, opened the Fourth Street shelter in the former Ponderosa Motors building.

Both Watson Agency officials and the new nonprofit agreed Wednesday it was a misunderstanding and that they must end the bickering for the sake of the animals and the shelter’s reputation.

“The nonprofit and Watson Agency mended some fences this morning,” said Dale Crews, Watson Agency senior vice president. “They want to start on a clean state and open discussion on how we can as a company and a nonprofit work in partnership.”

That’s why the nonprofit Coeur d’Alene Animal Shelter agreed to return the money it had collected in the last week of August from donations and fees for adoptions and other shelter services.

“Our interest is the animals,” said Jennifer Jenkins, one of three board members for the newly formed nonprofit. Returning the money, she said, ensures that “they won’t harm the animals.”

Crews said the animals’ lives were never at stake. Yet he added the nonprofit, even though it got official status, never had the right or permission to start taking Watson Agency’s money. The business currently is performing an internal audit.

Watson Agency changed the locks at the Fourth Street shelter Friday after learning of the missing money. The shelter also was closed Monday while the investigation continued.

Crews said Watson Agency continues to run the for-profit shelter but is willing to discuss turning the shelter business over to the new nonprofit group. He decline to provide details of how that would work.

Jenkins said the plan always was to have Watson Agency keep its city contracts for animal control and fees from dog licensing and citations. The nonprofit would run the shelter and provide employees and adoption services, using money from donations and adoption fees. The nonprofit also would pay rent to Watson Agency, which leases the Fourth Street building. Watson Agency also would continue to have its animal control office in the shelter.

These plans were outlined in letters to the Watson Agency attorney, Jenkins said. Because the nonprofit’s attorney never got a response and Jenkins said she had verbal agreement from Weick, the volunteers moved forward with the split.

The nonprofit opened a bank account and took the $2,700 from adoption fees and donations, she said.

Crews said the nonprofit proposal had merit but Watson Agency officials had no idea the volunteers would move so fast.

In July, the volunteers got official nonprofit status from the state and created a board of directors. None of that was a problem until late August when the new nonprofit started taking its share of donations and fees for adoptions and other shelter services. Watson Agency officials thought the volunteers – and perhaps the shelter director who was a Watson employee – were stealing and ordered the internal investigation.

Watson Agency demoted the shelter manager, moving her back to animal control, after questioning her involvement with giving the nonprofit money. The nonprofit wants the manager’s job reinstated and Crews said that’s under review.

Jenkins said part of becoming a nonprofit meant clarifying which entity got what money. Both the nonprofit and Watson Agency said talks on the possibility of splitting the nonprofit from Watson Agency should begin by month’s end.