Riverbank council delays decision on animal shelter study

RIVERBANK -- The City Council agreed Monday to postpone a vote on joining Oakdale in a study on a proposed new animal shelter.

Riverbank leaders said they wanted to wait until their Feb. 4 review of overall city finances before paying half of the $4,400 cost of the study.

The council had scheduled the budget review, which will cover the first half of the 2012-13 fiscal year. Money has been tight in recent years, so even a proposal for $2,200 is getting scrutiny.

Oakdale is looking to replace its 800-square-foot shelter, which opened in 1974 and started serving Riverbank under contract in 2009.

The Oakdale council voted last month to pay half the cost of the study, which will be done by a Colorado-based architectural firm called Animal Arts.

Neither city likely has enough money to cover the construction cost of perhaps $1 million. The study would rough out the design and allow private fund- raisers to launch a campaign.