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Kansas City unveils plan to take over animal control from KC Pet Project: 'More bang for the buck'

The Kansas City manager has 30 days to come up with a plan to strip KC Pet Project of its animal control duties and bring those back in-house
KC Pet Project / Facebook
Kansas City Council rejected a plan to extend KC Pet Project's contract for animal control, and heard a presentation about how to bring those services back in the city.

KC Pet Project's interim CEO is still hoping for a contract renewal, saying the organization is developing a new strategy for animal control that will include more citations.

Kansas City would provide more animal control officers under a plan to bring those services back in-house.

The plan was presented to City Council on Thursday by the Neighborhood Services Department, after the city last year rejected a contract renewal proposal from KC Pet Project. The organization had provided animal control enforcement since 2020 under a $2.5 million contract with Kansas City.

Neighborhood Services director Forest Decker says the yearly cost for animal control under city operation would be slightly higher than before, about $2.9 million. But he says service would improve.

“I think we would get more bang for the buck,” Decker said. “I think we would be much more responsive than the contractor has been and maybe even more so than we were in the past.”

Decker said that year one would cost the city about $4.6 million because it would have to acquire vehicles, equipment for officers and remodel some space.

After years of citizen complaints, the city rejected KC Pet Project’s renewal proposal last year, saying the organization wasn’t responding quickly enough to loose or dangerous animals.

Almost immediately, longtime KC Pet Project CEO Teresa Johnson resigned.

She was replaced by interim CEO Steve Kaufman, who said KCPP has not given up the hope of a contract renewal.

He said KCPP has developed a new strategic plan, which includes more ticket writing.

“We do need to look at more of those punitive actions when they are warranted and to make sure the officers know how to read that situation and do it correctly,” Kaufman said.

But KCPP also has not abandoned its longtime approach of trying to educate pet owners before citing them.

“If there is an animal being neglected or being abused, of course we want to take the animal out of that situation,” Kaufman said. “But to break up the family over a minor offense, seems like we should go an educational route rather than that punitive route.”

A 2023 KCUR investigation discovered that in the two years before KC Pet Project took over animal control, Kansas City officers wrote 3,683 citations, according to Kansas City Municipal Court data.

In the two years after, KC Pet Project officers wrote 1,973, a drop of 46%.

Decker also believes education is important. “You can’t automatically go to enforcement without at least educating people of what is expected of them,” he said.

On Thursday, several council members said they want to hear more from KC Pet Project before making a final decision.

As KCUR’s metro reporter, I hold public officials accountable. Are cities spending your tax money wisely? Are police officers and other officials acting properly? I will track down malfeasance by seeking open records and court documents, and by building relationships across the city. But I also need you — email me with any tips at sam@kcur.org, find me on Twitter @samzeff or call me at 816-235-5004.
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