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PAGE 2, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28, 1981, WHITBY FREE PRESS Whitby, Ajax and Pickering to make joint effort.... Animal control to get review 20 for $1.00? That's right. You buy them at any participating* McDonald's. Each gift certif icate is redeemable for one regular soft drink by children 14 years and under. And they're good for the whole month of November! McDonald's Halloween Gift Certificates are a great Halloween gift. They're safe and, at 20 certif icates for a dollar, they're terrific value. a Give out McDonald's Halloween Gift Certificates! 2Ofor,$190 quick to point out that anything done in the area of animal control services will be done as a joint effort. The report that each municipality endorsed calls for the contract wiht the society to be be studied by the senior staff of each munici- pality and as of press time, it was not known when the invitations to submit proposals for the service will be issued. Concerns over the level of service provided by the Ontario Humane Society have prompted the towns of Whitby, Ajax and Pickering to review animal control services in the three municipalities. At their respective meetings Monday night, Whitby Town Council, Ajax Town Council and Pickering Town Coun- cil's executive commit- tee endorsed a resolu- tion establishing goals and objectives for animal control services. The three municipali- ties have been co- operating in the area of animal control for several year, contract- ing this service to the Ontario Humane Society that operates a shelter on Thickson Road North. The mayors of the three towns are in general accord in their concerns. "It's a question of the level of service," Whitby's Bob Attersley said. "We're looking in- to the level of service that we have been pro- vided with." Attersley said that the contract currently in force wih the society does not spell out the levels of service and since it was signed in 1969 the town has only received verbal assurances that it is what it should be. "We owe it to the municipality," he said, "We must look at the level of service for the money we pay." Because it was not addressed in the old con- tract "the level of ser- vice is going to be ad- dressed in the new con- tract," Attersley said. However, Ajax Mayor Bill McLean stressed that "we're not making a decision to bail out at this time." "We're reviewing the situation," he added. McLean echoed At- tersley's concerns with the level of service provided and said that there should be a staffed vehicle in each munici- pality during the normal hours of operation as well as emergency ser- vice. "Which isn't the case at this time,"he said. Currently each of the municipalities pay the society as fee of $1.85 per capita per year for animal control services. Recently, the service requested that the fee be increased to $2.25 per capita. Pickering Mayor Jack Anderson shares his colleagues' concerns. "We haven't had any level of service, whatso- ever," Anderson said. "We're paying for a ser- vice that we're nlot get- ting." Anderson, like Atter- sley and McLean, is terminated on July 15, 1982 provided the Town of Whitby finalizes the purchase of the Thick- son Road facility and all necessary equipment and that "a suitable proposal has been received or negotiated to provide a level of ser- vice acceptable to the three municipalities at the lowest possible cost, with the least interrup- tion of services to the public." The report was the result of the delibera- tions of the Regional Animal Control or P.A.W. Committee that is composed of representatives of Whitby, Ajax and Pickering. The purchase of the. building willbe made jointly by the three municipalities. They will advertise for propoals that must fulfill the following con- ditions: - that an animal con- trol centre be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Monday to Friday and from 8 to 10 a.m. on Saturdays; - that regular basis patrols be provided in each municipality from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. from Monday to Friday with concentrated patrols in high incident problem areas. "There shall be one van and one trained person on patrol at all times during these hours in each municipality;" - that a 24-hour, seven- day a week emergency service be established on one fully equipped van and trained person; ana, - that there will also be an animal control supervisor and other employees as deemed necessary by the municipalities to main- tain the desired level of service. However, this does not mean that the con- tract with the humane society will be ter- minated because they could, indeed, become the successful tenderer on the project. The report also stresses that the munici- palities are not ter- minating the contract immediately. The municipalities will "notify the society that consideration is being given to terminat- ing the existing con- tract...with the under- standing that this is flot a formai notice of ter- mination." In fact, Attersley maintains that when the tendering stage is reached, the humane society will be invited to submit a proposai. He also said that if the society complies with the specifications laid out, they could be awar- ded the contract.