Antonow: OLHS Must Meet "Non-Negotiable" Requirements in City Contract

In Tuesday’s Oxford Board of Aldermen meeting, Alderman Janice Antonow read a list of “non-negotiable” requirements with which the Oxford-Lafayette Humane Society must comply if they hope to renew a contract with the City of Oxford and stay in their city-owned space.

The requirements listed by Antonow apply to any nonprofit in Oxford, but Antonow said items needed to be better specified in the nine-month contract with OLHS.
“They just weren’t getting it,” Antonow said. “None of these items are negotiable. This is the way it’s going to be, and they can agree to it or not.”
Antonow said OLHS must: hold bimonthly meetings, giving the public a three-day notice that includes an agenda; post the meetings’ minutes at the shelter as well as on the homepage of the shelter’s website; provide an oral and written report to the Board of Aldermen on a bimonthly basis; present to the board any out-of-the-ordinary expenditures over the amount of $500; and submit a full audit report to the City of Oxford by the end of the fiscal year.
Antonow noted that OLHS has made several improvements over the last few months.
“The rodents and the roaches were terrible,” she said. “The new executive director is getting a handle on that, and it’s much better. When I was in there the other day it even smelled better.”
The shelter, which was above capacity with 200 animals and only a three-person staff in August, is now down to 100 animals, she said.
“Other organizations that are dealing with animal transport and adoption are helping to keep the population at the shelter down, and that’s a good thing,” Antonow said. “I think they are improving the situation.”
If OLHS agrees to meet the requirements, Antonow said she would recommend that the board renew the contract for the next nine months. 
The Board of Aldermen will vote on the contract renewal in its next meeting scheduled for Jan. 2.

By Randall Haley, associate editor of HottyToddy.com. She can be reached at randall.haley@hottytoddy.com.