No more shelter shanty
As town shelter nears completion, Troxell bequest an issue
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Almost ready for prime time is Southold Town's new animal shelter in Peconic.
The disputed bequest from Patricia Toner Troxell to the North Fork Animal Welfare League was to have been used to build a new shelter or add a new a wing to the town-owned shelter within two years of a May 2005 court decision.
As construction of the new town shelter has progressed, the court has extended the date for use of the Troxell money and is expected to do so again, according to shelter director Gillian Wood Pultz.
The current quarters at the Southold animal shelter are in marked contrast to the new building, seen in background, which is expected to be completed sometime this fall.
At issue in expending the Troxell money has been the question of the benefactor's intent. According to Ms. Troxell's will, money was left to her husband, Robert, who has since died. Any funds remaining upon his death were to be used by the league to build a new shelter or a new wing to be named for the couple and to be owned by NFAWL. That shelter was to be located on the North Fork, according to the will. But the animal shelter sits on town land and, while the league is allowed to use it to house animals in addition to the dogs the town pays to shelter, the building doesn't belong to the league.
That brought other animal welfare groups -- Kent Animal Shelter in Calverton, Canine Companions for Independence in Farmingdale and the Southold-Raynor Foundation -- into the case, all vying to control the funds. The foundation and the town have been united in raising funding for a publicly owned shelter. League members, represented by New York City attorney Pamela Mann, argued that Kent and Canine Companions aren't on the North Fork and that Canine Companions has no shelter, only a training center for dogs who become companions to handicapped individuals.
But there are problems with that scenario, Mr. Russell said Tuesday. Because the league operates the town's dog shelter on a contract basis, allowing a wing to be added on town land, but belonging to the league, raises the question of what happens if the league ceases to be contracted for such services at some future date.
Nonetheless, he suggested that the issue could be revisited "in the new year."
The attorney for the Troxell estate, John Amrod, died in 2006. Ms. Mann and league president Terese McGuinness could not be reached for comment.
Should the league ever cease to be contracted by the town for animal control services, town attorney Pat Finnegan said extensions would be easy to get as long as the league can show progress toward completing the new shelter and pending plans to add a Troxell wing that could be mobile.
The scheduled completion date for the shelter was Aug. 18, Ms. Pultz said as she conducted a tour of the facility just north of the current shelter. The construction foreman who had provided the Aug. 18 date wasn't available, and Ms. Pultz didn't want to speculate about how much longer she, her staff and the animals under their care must wait before making the move. But with interior work getting under way, it could be ready in time to spare the animals from another cold winter in inadequate cages.
"It's such a contrast," Ms. Pultz said, looking over the wall from the new shelter to the makeshift cages that have been used for years to house animals.
Visitors to the new shelter will first encounter glassed-in rooms that will house cats. While Southold Town pays only to shelter dogs, the league takes in all animals. It's particularly difficult to find homes for cats, Ms. Pultz said. She hopes that featuring them in such a prominent place will encourage more prospective adopters to consider providing them with permanent homes.
There's also space `where newly rescued animals can be isolated until they have passed the health checkups that enable them to mingle with the general animal population. A separate locked entrance to one room will enable police who pick up a pet overnight to bring it to a place where there's food, water and shelter until shelter staff members arrive in the morning to deal with the new arrival.
There's also a separate room for veterinarians to examine animals and spay or neuter them.
"We won't be doing cat neuters on the kitchen table where we eat anymore," Ms. Pultz said. In fact, there's even a separate staff room for lunch breaks, and Ms. Pultz and her staff will share an office somewhat larger than the current space they have in a tiny trailer on the shelter grounds.
While there are indoor kennels and dog runs, there's also a room for a few shy dogs to be introduced more gently to the larger shelter population.
Another room will provide space for prospective adopters to meet alone with the animals of their choice, and there's a classroom for training that could also be used during evening hours for small meetings if the town needs the space, Ms. Pultz said.
jlane@timesreview.com
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