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Home My WebLink AboutCode Enforcement 2016 Annual Report SOUTH 8 04��rr �'lp U C7 . x x 1865 ACCOUNTABILITY CITY OF SOUTH BEND EXCELLENCE i • • N I INCLUSION 1 EMPOWERMENT FF led in Cle7rkce MAY 1 AREEMAM LER CLERK,SOUTH BEND, IN Code n orcemen 2016 Annual Pete Buttigieg Randy Wilkerson Mayor of South Bend Director of Code Enforcement Tracy Sklbins Marlaina Johns Deputy Director of Code Enforcement Preparer of Annual Report 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 1 C= D= y ■ M I `! Your 2016-2017 Code Enforcement Inspectors&NEAT Crew 1 41 a7 Your 2016-2017 Code Enforcement Office Staff 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 2 1 _ Y t Your 2016-2017 South Bend Animal Care&Control Team .Ijj t2 1 ILA f ?J t. 1 t � a r _ I Your 2016-2017 NEAT Crew 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 3 Executive Summary The work of Code Enforcement is undeniably difficult;however,every employee continues to serve the public with a high level of professionalism and outstanding customer service. Having said that,we know there is room for improvement. One way to better assist the community we serve,is to promote our services and share information. In 2016 we developed r informational brochures that include helpful information pertaining to Code Enforcement. These brochures can also be conveniently accessed by visiting our updated website. The brochures cover topics such as: Neighborhood Code Enforcement, Parking Guidelines, Neighborhood Cleanup, Dumping Prevention,Vacant and Abandoned Property,and Renovate Right: Lead Paint. The feedback has been extremely positive. Employee education and training is something that is important to us. Inspectors, office staff and Animal Care and Control were able to attend first aid and AED training as well as de- escalation training. Inspectors also attended asbestos training. We even had an office staff member trained in Behavioral Insights. Training efforts will continue in 2017 to include: diversity and inclusion training,asbestos training,and additional de-escalation training. In 2016,Code Enforcement asked for the cooperation of everyone who owns a property in South Bend,which is not personally occupied by the owner,to register the property(s)via the Landlord Registration program. At the end of the year,we had almost four thousand properties registered. The Landlord Registration is important because non-owner occupied properties continue to generate a majority of Code Enforcement issues. 72%of all environmental violations cited in 2016 were non-owner occupied. Of all properties identified as vacant and abandoned between December 2015 and December 2016,81%were owned by someone living outside of South Bend. Being able to identify,and contact,a property owner is imperative; especially in emergency situations such as a house fire or when investigating the inadequate housing of renters. We do expect to see the number of registrations increase as more people are made aware of the requirement to register. We were able to meet many of our goals for 2016; lowering the number of uncollectible abatements was one of them. We surpassed our goal with an average of 95%abatements being billable. The average percentage of environmental citations cleaned by owner was 54%,which surpassed our set target. We just missed the goal that was set for the number of animals returned to owner by.04%. An impressive four million pounds of litter and debris and 6,314 tires were abated by the NEAT Crew in 2016. 1 would like to thank the outstanding staff of Code Enforcement,the Mayor's Office, Police and Fire Departments, Human Resources, Central Services, Legal Department,and the Department of Community Investment for their continued support. Respectfully Yours, Tracy Skibins Deputy Director of Code Enforcement 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev MI 3 10 17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 4 Contents Executive Summary.................................................. 3 Employee Education &Training.............................23 Contents...................................................................4 Asbestos Training..............................................23 Organizational Charts ...........................................5-7 First Aid & AED Training....................................23 2016 Code Enforcement...................................... 5 De-escalation Training......................................23 2017 Code Enforcement...................................... 6 Behavioral Insights Training..............................23 2017 South Bend Animal Care and Control......... 7 SBACC Manager's Summary............................. 24-25 Code Enforcement's Responsibilities....................... 8 SBACC's Responsibilities.........................................26 Budget Data and Analysis...................................9-10 SBACC's Data &Analysis................................... 26-28 Funding................................................................ 9 Euthanasia Rates.............................................27 Revenue............................................................. 10 Distribution of Animal Outcomes.............. 27-28 Housing Data and Analysis................................11-13 SBACC's Updates .............................................. 28-29 New Housing Cases ........................................... 11 Extended Shelter Hours ..................................28 Housing Cases: Days Active............................... 11 Animal Control Officer Specialization .............28 Hearing Process............................................12-13 First Aid and AED Training...............................28 Environmental Data and Analysis.....................13-18 Increasing Transparency.................................28 Environmental Records................................13-14 Staff Changes...................................................29 Grass Violations................................................. 14 SBACC's Successes..................................................29 Ownership Analysis........................................... 14 Operation Silent Night.....................................29 Inspector Area Violation Count......................... 15 Shelter Selfie of the Day..................................29 NEAT Crew......................................................... 15 Code Enforcement's 2017 Goals............................30 Continuous Enforcement.............................15-16 Purge &Scan Files..............................................30 Environmental Violations GIS.......................16-18 Audit Files in Naviline.........................................30 Landlord Registration............................................. 19 Code Enforcement Trucks..................................30 Abandoned Vehicles.............................................. 19 Code Enforcement Outreach.............................30 Vacant &Abandoned Initiative.........................19-20 SBACC's 2017 Goals................................................31 Vacant & Abandoned Narrative...................19-20 Box Trucks..........................................................31 Outcome Numbers............................................ 20 Project V.A.L.O.R................................................31 Remaining V&A Properties................................ 20 Good Dog Tech...................................................31 Key Performance Indicators................................... 21 Dog Fighting Prevention ....................................31 Code Enforcement's Updates...........................21-22 Project H.E.A.L....................................................31 Accela ...........................................................21-22 Informational Materials .................................... 22 Staff Changes..................................................... 22 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Res N1,J 3.10.11 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 5 2016 Code Enforcement Organizational Chart Randy Wilkerson Director of Code Enforcement Chris Pemberton Barbara Chlebowski Inspector IV Hearing Secretary Dena Criswell Cecil Eastman Inspector IV Director of financial Services Ed Williams Jessica Brock Inspector IV Executive Administrative Assistant Greg McGowan Kathy Eli Inspector IV Secretary IV Jeff Katona Kenisha Wells Inspector IV Billing Clerk(PT) D-- Jim Wood Marlaina Johns Inspector IV Data Analyst John Helak Shelby Nicolini-Prince InspectorlV Secretary IV Stan Molenda Inspector(PT) Tom Anderson InspectorlV Angelo Logrande Jennifer Gobel NEAT Supervisor II SBACCShelter Manager See Page 7 Alberto Jones James Walker Scott Jester `-- -° Operator III Operator III Operator III 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MI 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report– Department of Code Enforcement 6 2017 Code Enforcement Organizational Chart Randy Wilkerson Director of Code Enforcement Tracy Skibins Deputy Director Chris Pemberton Barbara Chlebowski Inspector IV Hearing Secretary Dena Criswell Inspector IV Jamie Smith Administrative Assistant —C Ed Williams InspectorlV Jennifer Early Administrative Assistant TBD InspectorlV Kathy Eli Administrative Assistant Jeff Katona Inspector IV Kenisha Wells Jim Wood Billing Clerk(PT) Inspector IV Marlaina Johns John Helak Data Analyst Inspector IV Ron O'Connor Stan Molenda Director of Financial Services Inspector(PT) Shelby Nicolini-Prince Tom Anderson Executive Administrative Assistant Inspector IV Angelo Logrande Jennifer Gobel NEAT Supervisor IV SBACC Shelter Manager 7 1 _3 See Page 7 Alberto Jones James Walker Scott Jester Operator III Operator III Operator III 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 7 2017 South Bend Animal Care and Control Organizational Chart C SBAJennifer Gobel CC Shelter Manager Stasia Orlowski Assistant Shelter Manager Cecilia Wroblewski tA la ynna Goheen Kennel Assistant(PT) Animal Control Officer Diana Hostetler April Michaels Animal Care Coordinator Animal Control Officer CElizabeth D(PT) Devon Mills Kennel Ass Animal Control Officer Jamie Gray Kolbie Singleton Office Coordinator Animal Control Officer 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 8 Code Enforcement's Responsibilities • Pursue citizen complaints • Process environmental citations such as:trash, - tall grass, illegal dumping, litter,traffic ,- obstructions,snow removal, etc. • Cite abandoned and illegally parked vehicles glow • Assess substandard housing conditions such as: broken windows or doors, no heat, dilapidated flooring,vacant and abandoned properties, 2531 Linden before (6/17/2013) structural issues, etc. • Evaluate zoning violations such as: conducting a business in a residential neighborhood, multiple - - families residing in a single family structure, x garage or trailer used as a residence, etc. • Prepare and testify at Code Enforcement Hearings • Demolition of secondary residential structures and commercial buildings • Abatement of environmental hazards • Facilitate the securing and boarding of open 2531 Linden after(1/5/2016) doors and windows • Abate environmental issues on city/county owned properties • Review business licenses for auto service centers,towing companies,scrap metal dealers, pet shops, public parking lots and garages, and donation containers • Asbestos testing on demolition affirmed properties • Testify in civil matters and contestation of tickets involving Code Enforcement • South Bend Animal Care and Control 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 9 Budget Data and Analysis Funding Adjusted Funding Sources 2014 2015 2016 Department Fund Budget Actual Budget Actual Budget Actual Amount Expenses Amount Expenses Amount Expenses Civil City 2,251,638 1,912,775 2,340,485 1,739,071 1,733,372 1,387,405 Code Capital $84,771 $0 $74,000 $0 $70,285 $70,285 Enforcement Improvement 219 _` $951,497 $770,740 Civil City $689,215 $626,856 $696,216 $636,091 $729,330 $672,209 SBACC Capital $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 Improvement Sub-Total $3,025,624 $2,539,631 $3,110,701 $2,375,162 $3,484,484 $2,900,639 Surplus $485,993 $735,539 $583,845 The Department of Code Enforcement's budgeted funding CODE ENFORCEMENT FUND ALLOCATION increased by 12% in 2016 (compared to 2015). South Bend Animal Care and Control •. used 92% of its allocated funding. ; i The Office of Code Enforcement used 81% of its allocated funding. The result was a surplus of$583,845 (combined) for the year. Overall,the Department's actual fund allocation remains relatively stable. Payroll & Benefits increased by just under 1%compared to 2015. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev M,3,01 2016 Annual Report- Department of Code Enforcement 10 Revenue Department Revenue Code Enforcement 2014 2015 2016 Code Enforcement's overall revenue in 2016 increased by 6.8% Abandoned Vehicles $13,454 $14,070 $28,296 (or$27,508)from 2015. Environmental collections decreased Environmental Collections $89,224 $155,744 $33,414 by 79%. Demolitions Substandard $33,961 $117,065 $184,685 Percent change by category is as follows: Housing &Boardings Civil Penalty $193,005 $86,562 $129,938 • Environmental Collections decreased by 79% Ordinance Violations $18,649 $21,768 $15,950 • Demolitions & Boardings increased by 58% Vacant&Abandoned $4,350 $11,153 $17,171 Registration • Ordinance Violations decreased by 27% • Abandoned Vehicles increased by 101% Forfeited Cash $152,914 $0 $0 Performance Bonds • Vacant &Abandoned Registrations increased by 54% Miscellaneous Income $1,3191 $260 $24,675 • Miscellaneous income increased by 9,390% subtotal for code $506 • Civil Penalties increased by 50% Enforcement ,876 $406,621 $434,129 The overall increases are a continued result of consistent billing SBACC 2014 2015 2016 practices. Additionally, we continue to work with the property Pet Licenses $15,993 $21,790 $19,375 owners to make payment arrangements, as needed,to pay off Pet Reclaim Fee $4,778 $3,809 $4,685 any outstanding balance(s). Pet Adoption Fee $11,982 $13,995 $16,744 Pet Microchipping $3,6601 $4,081 $3,230 Civil Penalties collected increased by 50%. This is largely due to Animal Surrenders $6,647 $8,896 $8,750 the resumption of assessing Civil Penalties. Pet Miscellaneous $16,584 $5,618 $5,885 Subtotal for SBACC $59,644 $58,188 $58,669 Miscellaneous income increased by such a large percentage due to a change in financial officer and monies received not being Grand Total $566,519 $464,810 $492,798 allocated consistently in Naviline and Accela. In 2016,total revenue for SBACC increased by 0.83%. Pet Reclaim Fees increased by 23%. This is a result of a higher percentage of animals being reclaimed by owners; potentially attributed to the increased use of microchips, and lost and found social media postings. Pet Adoption Fees increased by 20%. This is due to adopting more animals out at their standard adoption rates rather than discounted rates (as done in the past). Pet Licenses decreased by 11% as a result of fewer licenses being issued. Pet Microchipping decreased by 21%. Animal Surrender fees decreased by only 2%, despite an overall reduction in the number of animals surrendered by owners (31%fewer animals surrendered than in 2015). Our staff continues to make it a point to hold people accountable when they bring their pets in for surrender by collecting the appropriate fees. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MI 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 11 Housing Data and Analysis Housing Data 2014 2015 2016 New Housing Cases New Housing Cases 513 634 682 Secure Orders Issued 222 187 128 There were 682 new housing cases opened in 2016; an increase of 8% Closed Housing Cases 1,375 1,016 889 compared to last year. Housing Hearings 957 1,053 893 New V&A Properties 240 99 83 The number of secure orders issued continues to decrease. This is Identified likely as a result of fewer vacant and abandoned properties (i.e.fewer Vacant& V&A Cases Closed 477 466 187 Abandoned Demolished by City 295 257 110 properties needing boarded). Demolished by Activity 8 8 0 Private A total of 889 housing cases were resolved in 2016; 12.5% lower than Repaired by Private 141 172 73 last year. This is largely due to the completion of the Vacant and Repaired& 33 29 4 Occupied by Private Abandoned Initiative in 2015. Housing Cases: Days Active Opened vs.Closed within Same Year Total #Closed %Closed Code Enforcement has been working diligently to reduce the average cases w/in Year w/in Year number of days a housing case remains active (i.e. how quickly we are able Opened 2006 928 354 38% to encourage owners to bring their properties within compliance). The table 2007 860 307 36% "Opened vs. Closed within Same Year"shows how many cases have been 2008 1064 311 29% 2009 908 214 24% opened and closed within the same year. For the past 10 years,we have 2010 695 195 28% averaged 33% of all cases opened in one year being closed out in the same 2011 874 322 1 37% year. In 2016 we were above that average with 37%of housing cases 2012 910 319 35% 2013 863 268 31% opened in 2016 being resolved in 2016 (252 cases of 682 opened). 2014 513 172 34% 2015 634 206 32% "Cumulative Days Active to Date" looks at the average number of days a case 2016 682 252 37% was/has remained open as of 12/31/16 (if not closed). This includes cases that are still open dating back to as early as 1998. This is Cumulative Days Active to Date Total Average #of Active Average helpful in understanding what our historical averages are and if our Average to Days until cases Days averages for the amount of time it takes to close a case are Date closed Remaining Active improving. Looking at the cumulative data,there is a continued 2006 1,109 1,055 25 3,839 decrease in the number of average days it takes to close a case. The 2007 1,103 1,046 34 3,434 2008 1,100 1,037 1 60 3,074 average number of days active is not worthy of analyzing since more 2009 1,086 1,022 42 2,750 recent years will obviously have fewer days active. 2010 1,068 1,003 34 2,366 2011 1,049 980 101 1,957 2012 1,027 954 170 1,661 2013 1,003 930 1761 1,279 2014 986 914 135 899 2015 961 897 271 1 531 2016 929 884 403 168 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 12 Hearing Process One of our goals for the past couple of years has been to Civil Penalties imposed per Year increase compliance with,and attendance of, Code Enforcement Hearings. In pursuance of that goal,we _ continue to send expired repair orders back through the 219 hearing process if there were no repairs made and/or no 300 extensions requested. Our objective is to relay to the 305 property owner we are serious about the property being brought up to the standards of their neighborhood,the International Property Maintenance Code, and city 02016 02015 02014 ordinances. We continue to ask for civil penalties against owners who show a willful neglect of their properties. Willful neglect Hearing Type Distribution may mean the owner fails to attend Code Enforcement 0.5% 1.2% Hearings, has multiple violations, and/or has been given 17.5% II ample opportunity to make repairs/clean the property and fails to do so. The civil penalty amount is determined on a case-by-case basis. Our goal is to get the property repaired and/or cleaned, not to create a financial hardship. Additionally,for all properties that are scheduled for a 13.0% hearing we now request that they also be affirmed for continuous enforcement as part of the order. This permits us to secure the property, mow the grass, and remove trash 67.8% and debris without notification. In 2016, 1,104 cases went through the hearing process. The breakdown is as follows: .Repairs ■Demolitions ■Environmental Vehicle ■Appea'. • 749 Repairs (67.8%) 0 32.9%were affirmed 0 39.8%were modified to repair orders 0 12.3%were repaired by owner • 144 Demolitions (13%) 0 59.7%were affirmed 0 11.1%were modified to repair orders 0 6%were demolished by owner 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 13 • 193 Environmental (17.5%) 0 25.4%were affirmed 0 16.6%were modified to establish a deadline 0 48.7%were cleaned by owner • 5 Vehicle (0.5%) • 13 Appeal (1.2%) 0 61.5%were granted 0 38.5%were denied This year we started holding appeal hearings for grass cutting disputes. When someone fills out an Invoice Dispute form, one of our staff members reviews the case to ensure that the case was processed properly. If it wasn't,we void the fee (before it goes to a hearing). If it is valid,we schedule the case for an Appeal Hearing. This allows the individual to state his or her case in front of an impartial hearing officer. The Hearing Officer will either grant or deny the dispute. Environmental Data and Analysis Code Enforcement spends a majority of its time, energy and Environmental Records resources addressing environmental violations. Tall grass and 2014 2015 2016 weeds,trash and debris on properties, in alleys, and along Total Cases Inspected 17,339 14,889 15,326 walkways continues to be a problem for the City of South (per Record#) Bend. It is important to note that in 2015 we were between Total Letters Mailed per 10,985 11,586 13,462 Record# three different software programs for citing environmental Total Properties Sent to violations. We were still using the CollectorApp as the Crew for Abatement per 4,219 5,727 4,587 primary software until May. Naviline was also used for special Record# environmental cases until May. In May we transitioned over Total Environmental 79 73 193 to primarily using the new Accela software. Each program Hearings records violation types and counts differently. Numbers are combined as uniformly as possible given the differentiations in recording. To explain the difference in how these programs record information in a little more in depth, Naviline allowed us to cite multiple environmental violations under one record number(meaning only one letter would be sent). For example, one record number could have multiple violations such as tall grass, litter,tires and obstruction of traffic. The CollectorApp only allowed us to cite one violation per record number/letter. The same violations, as mentioned above,would have resulted in four separate record numbers/letters being mailed (combined into the same envelope) using the CollectorApp. Accela allows us to cite two environmental violations per record number/letter. The case above would have required two record numbers and two letters in Accela. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W.Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 14 Total violations cited in 2016 was 3% more than in 2015. Ideally we would like to see this number decrease. In a perfect world,the lower this number is,the cleaner the city is being kept by its residents. The total number of letters mailed for those violations increased by 16.2%. The total number of environmental hearings increased by 164% between 2015 and 2016. This change is partially attributed to an increase in cautiousness when abating violations located on potentially occupied properties, behind a fence, etc. We also began to improve environmental hearing scheduling in Accela. Environmental Citations by Category 1.5% Environmental citations can be grouped into 4 primary categories (in 13.1% ' order of prevalence): MAI. 1. Litter-appliances,furniture,trash/debris, demolition remains 2. Tall grass or weeds 3. Vegetation - removal or clean-up 4. Graffiti The most common type of environmental citations (at 57.2%) involve 57.2% litter, discarded appliances, bags of trash,furniture, and demolition remains. Second most common (at 28.1%) are citations for grass and weeds over nine inches tall. Vegetation is the third most prevalent (at •Graffiti ■Grass and Weeds .Litter ■Vegetation 13.1%)for violations such as tree limbs or branches,yard waste,vegetation overgrowth, etc. Graffiti is the third type of category at 1.5%of overall violations. Grass Violations We had another busy grass season. We initiated 3,338 new records for tall grass and/or weed violations. Of those, 68% (2,280) were abated by owner. Including continuous enforcement properties, the Parks Crew completed 4,290 cuts for the Department of Code Enforcement. Time between citation and abatement averaged 11.90 days. Ownership Analysis Using the Accela software for all environmental violations allows us to easily analyze the ownership of a property. In 2016, we found that only 28%of environmental records were on properties where the owner address was the same as the property address (i.e. properties potentially owner-occupied). 68%of all environmental violations belonged to a property that was owned by someone with a mailing address in South Bend. 82% belonged to an owner with a mailing address in Indiana; 18%with a mailing address outside of Indiana. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 15 Inspector Area Violation Count Our department splits South Bend into 8 areas. One inspector is assigned to monitor each area. s Below is the number of records created in 2016 per inspector ! _ area. 1 � z Records per Inspector Area 8 1,257 7 ,900 \ - 6 1,404 _. . 1 G 5 1,408 4 1,292 5 3 1,460 ,l 2 1,494 1 1,822 NEAT Crew Code Enforcement is responsible for the abatement of environmental violations. The Neighborhood Enforcement Action Team (NEAT) is the branch of Code Enforcement that is tasked with this responsibility. NEAT consists of one supervisor and three operators. In 2016, NEAT was assigned 4,587 properties to abate. 36%of those assigned violations were cleaned by owner with the other 64% being abated by our crew. Over 4 million pounds of litter and debris and 6,314 tires were abated by the NEAT Crew in 2016! Total amount of billable abatements was$801,207. The average amount billed was$274. Continuous Enforcement 2016 was the first year inspectors were able to add properties to continuous enforcement without requiring a Code Enforcement Hearing by issuing direct orders from the Director. Not only has using direct orders saved money by not processing cases through the hearing process, it also allows us to more quickly remove environmental violations. As with continuous enforcement orders through a Code Enforcement hearing, under the Indiana Unsafe Building Law, once we provide the initial notification to the property owner informing him/her that the property has a continuous enforcement order,we do not need to cite the property in order to abate it for the next two years (continuous 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MI 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 16 enforcement orders expire after two years). Any property that percentage of CE Properties per Council District is under continuous enforcement can be abated without 12.1% notification. 1.2% Inspectors added 1,018 properties via director order. These 4.8% 24.2% were properties known to have recurring environmental violation issues. An additional 268 properties were added 14.4% through the hearing process. After being contacted by the owner, 188 properties were removed from continuous enforcement with an understanding of the need to keep the 43.1% property in clean and secure condition and another 143 orders ■ 1 a2 3 4 ■5 ■6 expired and were removed. The total number of abatements for all continuous enforcement properties,was 3,310 cuts. Each parcel was mowed an average of 2.98 times. Upon inspection, in 3,288 instances the properties had already been mowed by the owner. This means that 50%of the time that the Parks Department went out to mow a property, it had already been mowed by owner. As of March 9, 2017,there are 1,188 active continuous enforcement designated properties (this includes preexisting continuous enforcement properties added at hearings in 2015). Environmental Violations GIS Representations All Violations i�• yyam,�,,s sa:s - •.r•• t{ � �. : .. W-49L Oz • .. r.S.ijt�.J�..•i�.•`.^ Y �� ' - tL�A•�,:y dti '�.�'��•'•�T/��„` a••.J •• .r••: q A 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 17 5 or more Violations per Address ib Count <Null> 9 8 7 6 r 5 4 3 3 • .µ g i . } z . .,f,a.: .. �, 2 _J N. 3-4 We 0.• Ir Violations ... ... • per Address % «•wN; :•1 4b Count ft • <Null> 9 We 7 • 6 5 IF. 4 • 3 2 V 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev M131017 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 18 % Violations per Address ♦* • 0 . !4 ..10 %o6 11 % Count <Null> 4' 0-V 9 w 8 7 6 5 4 6Fn 3 1I • 2 oo 0% o 0 �"x eon o o Violation o c8 o 9 7 oo 0 o I_% o o o per Address o o o 0 o o a oo ".—o o oqq A o Oa o i0000 o o Count o� o O o o 14M <Null> o oo 9 o o 8 o 7 o o oo qn 6 o o I co !o S o - 4 o o9800 o 0. oo 3 o'bo o 2 oo cFb o 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 19 Landlord Registration 2016 was the first year for the Landlord Registration program. There are always challenges when new initiatives/programs are created. Due to the amount of confusion surrounding the process, our office created training guides for both the public and staff as well as a frequently asked questions (FAQ)section. Results of the 2016-2017 registration (upon the deadline) were as follows: • 3,964 properties registered • 848 owners (an average of 4.7 properties per owner) • Location of owners 0 2,761 in south bend o States with 25+ properties registered: ■ 3,441 in Indiana ■ 113 in Illinois ■ 100 in Israel (country) ■ 69 in Michigan ■ 43 in California ■ 46 in Florida ■ 26 in Kansas We would have liked to see more compliance. We anticipate increased compliance in 2017. Abandoned Vehicles In 2016,the number of tagged vehicles increased by 45%. The number Abandoned Vehicles of auctioned vehicles increased by 22%. The number of vehicles 2014 2015 2016 scrapped in 2016 was 211% higher than in 2015! This is largely due to Tagged 594 736 1070 the increase in number of abandoned vehicles estimated to have a Auctioned 16 41 50 value less than $500 (the City of South Bend only scraps abandoned Reclaimed 16 10 11 vehicles with an estimated value less than $500). Scrapped 12 18 56 Revenue $13,454 $14,070 $28,296 Vacant & Abandoned Initiative Vacant and Abandoned Property Narrative When an inspector verifies a property is vacant and has active housing violations,the owner is given 30 days to make repairs. After 30 days,the inspector reinspects the property to see if repairs were made. If repairs are not made, it becomes an active V&A property. From that day forward, a reinspection occurs every 30 days to verify the status of the property and prepare it for the hearing process. Upon reinspection, pictures are collected,forms are completed and ownership is repeatedly checked. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report—Department of Code Enforcement 20 A substantial amount of office staff and inspector time goes into preparing V&A houses for Code Enforcement Hearings. In fact, 92.7%of all V&A properties have gone through the Code Enforcement Hearing process at least once. It is common for properties to go through at least two hearings before receiving an affirmed demolition order(when demolition is warranted). Furthermore, all demolition properties must be inspected for asbestos. Each property requires two site visits. Each asbestos inspection requires two inspectors and takes an average of two hours to complete. Additionally, utilities need to be retired on all properties. Our office staff coordinates the termination of gas,water and electric on all demolition affirmed properties to help expedite the demolition process for demolition contractors. Outcome Numbers In 2016,we added 83 properties to our V&A list bringing the total number of V&A properties since 2013 to 1,460. We also closed out 168 V&A properties this year. Of those, 110 were demolished by the City and 77 properties were repaired by private individuals. At the close of 2016,the cumulative total of V&A properties addressed was 1,249. V&A Outcome Type Distribution The breakdown is as follows: • 711 Demolished Repaired • 10 Deconstructed Demolished • 524 Repaired III • 4 CDC partnership properties Remaining V&A Properties In 2016 we began designating qualified commercial structures as vacant and abandoned. To date,we have added 9 commercial structures to the V&A list and anticipate adding more. As of March 10, 2017,we currently have 225 remaining V&A properties. Of those,44 properties are affirmed for demolition (40 residential,4 commercial). Another 44 residential V&A properties are under a repair order/agreement. The remaining 137 properties are currently being monitored by our inspection staff and will be set for Code Enforcement Hearings as needed in hopes of reaching an outcome. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report- Department of Code Enforcement 21 Key Performance Indicators Target December November October September August July June May April March February January %311 Calls Resolved in 24 0.9 1 1 1 1 1 1 na na 1 1 0.83 1 Hours %of Billable Abatements 0.9 0.99 0.95 1 0.96 0.97 0.96 0.9 0.99 0.98 0.93 0.86 0.93 Average#Days from 14 14 14 14 14 is 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 Request to Abatement Housing Cases Closed 12 1 261 48 62 95 3 1 29 1 37 21 5 32 23 21 %Environmental AR 0 25 0.3 0.32 0.38 0.2 Collected %of Environmental issues 0.46 0.59 0.59 0.59 0.57 O.S7 0.57 0.53 0.44 0.49 0.45 0.54 0.51 Cleaned by Owner Adoptions 32 29 22 25 24 25 24 23 19 23 31 25 1 20 Bite cases serviced by SBACC <16 34 14 19 6 19 16 28 23 35 22 13 17 (cats,dogs,wil d I ife) %of Animals Returned to 0.147 0.151 0.13 0.136 0.106 0.103 0.171 0.091 0.184 0.209 0.1 0.181 0.157 Owner %of Animals Sent to 0.342 0.201 0.21 0.228 0.452 0.242 0.31 0.254 0.27 0.335 0.234 0.346 0.273 Rescue/Rehab Volunteer hours 186 89 102.3 1 55.68 110.5 87 137.41 199.8 94.67 128.82 226.51 224.71 223.03 In 2016, one of our goals was to lessen the number of uncollectible abatements. Our goal was to have 90%or more of our abatements billed to owners. Meaning we sought to reduce the number abatements labeled as "illegal dumping". We surpassed our goal 11 out of 12 months. In fact, our average for the year was 95% billable abatements! Environmental citations cleaned by owner surpassed the target set for the majority of the year. The average percentage of environmental violations cleaned by owner was 54%for the year(e.g. slightly more than 1 out of 2 violations were cleaned by owner). We believe that due to our improved billings and collections procedures, property owners are making an effort to increase compliance. The number of closed housing cases per month consistently surpasses our goal of 12. This is a result of improved policies and procedures when it comes to addressing substandard housing. We continue to see more bite cases than we would like. Our goal was to have 16 or fewer bite cases per month. Our average for the year was 19. The average percent of animals returned to owner for the year(1.43%) was just shy of our goal (1.47%). Our average of animals sent to rescues or rehabs was also lower for the year(2.8%)than our goal of 3.4%. Code Enforcement's Updates Accela In 2015 Code Enforcement began transitioning to Accela software. Once fully implemented,Accela will replace all other case management software programs the department has used. All environmental citations are currently processed 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10 17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 22 through Accela. Housing violations will begin being processed in Accela in 2017. This transition will allow Code Enforcement to work towards its goal of becoming paperless. Accela is virtually instantaneous. While on location,the inspector fills in information about the violation,takes and attaches pictures,then submits the violation electronically. The inspector is able to see the parcels where he or she is standing and can choose where the citation needs to be and the ownership information. Then, daily, at a designated time,the office staff generates the violation letters for the previous day. Once fully operational,the software will automatically attach up-to-date ownership from the county system and generate letters with just a few simple commands. The entire process is completed within twenty-four hours. The time saved processing a single citation by office staff and inspectors is an estimated 68%. Informational Materials One of our goals in 2016 was to update our website and to create informational brochures. The brochures are available online and in our office. Our hope is that by providing materials that address many of the common violations and concerns in our community, along with corresponding explanations,we will be able to create a change in behaviorthat will prevent future violations. Staff Changes We welcomed several new members to our team in 2016 as well as said good bye to a few. New additions included: • Chris Pemberton, Inspector IV • Dena Criswell, Inspector IV • Ron O'Connor, Director of Financial Services • Shelby Nicolini-Prince,Administrative Assistant To leave were: • Cecil Eastman, Director of Financial Services • Cynthia Holtz, Financial Specialist • Dora Gonzalez,Secretary IV • Greg McGowan, Inspector IV • Jessica Brock, Executive Administrative Assistant • Seema Timble, Fiscal Officer • Vince Burkhart, Inspector IV • Willetta Brewer-Miller, Inspector IV 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 23 Code Enforcement's Employee Education & Training Asbestos Training In May of 2016 our inspectors were recertified on asbestos safety,testing techniques and usage of protective equipment. The training and certification provided were approved by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM). The training for the initial certification is two days. Each subsequent certification requires a one- day refresher course for annual recertification. At this time, all of our inspectors are certified by the state. First Aid and AED Training Two office staff members and two inspectors attended, and were certified in,first aid and AED. Many in the department were trained in 2015. 15 people are now certified in CPR (across the Department including SBACC). We hope to continue to have more people trained every year. De-escalation Training The entire department (Code Enforcement and Animal Control) attended de-escalation training hosted by Fred Pryor Seminars. We hope to continue learning additional de-escalation techniques. Behavioral Insights Training One of our office staff members attended the Behavioral Insights Training seminar hosted by the Innovation & Technology Department. The skills learned in the training will allow us to perform random sampling experiments with our letters and invoices in pursuit of increasing our owner response rates as well as maximizing our return on investment for mailed items. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 RP M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 24 SBACC Manager's Summary I took over as Shelter Manager Nov. 1411, 2016 after a fourteen year careerwith the South Bend Police Department. The moment I walked through the door, I realized this was where my heart truly is. The SBACC is one of the City's most dedicated and hardest working staff with whom I have ever had the pleasure of working. In 2016,SBACC was successful in lowering its euthanasia numbers once more as we �. continued our efforts to one day achieve a "no kill" status. For the first time, SBACC participated as a stop in the famous Urban Adventure Games. The staff really enjoyed being a part of it and it was great exposure for the shelter as many of the residents °• didn't even know where we were located. Staff participated in de-escalation training in 2016 to help enhance their abilities to manage angry residents. Staff also received updated equipment this year to help ensure job safety and increase job efficiency. Also in 2016,the shelter added its own photography studio in order take great pictures that capture the personalities of our animals to help them get adopted. We also increased our social media presence to help educate, inform, and let the community know about our wonderful adoptable animals. To that end,we started a "Shelter Selfie of the Day"that shows various staff and volunteers taking selfies with the animals. Looking forward to 2017,we have many great goals to work toward. We are increasing our community outreach efforts with programs like SBACC H.E.A.L. (Heart, Education,Achievement, and Leadership). Project H.E.A.L. will work with at- risk youth and shelter dogs. Teenagers will be taught humane education,compassion and empathy while in turn training our shelter dogs in basic manners. This not only educates and helps the kids, it is great enrichment for the dogs and will increase their chances of being adopted. In early 2017, SBACC began offering low-cost classes for dog owners called "Good Dog Tech: Proactive Solution for Problem Pups". These classes help people address behavioral issues they are having with their pups. Our intended audience is members of the community who desperately want to keep their canine companion, but cannot afford to hire a trainer or take them to training classes. Since one of our goals is to help keep our adopted pups in their new homes, we offer one free class to anyone who adopts one of our dogs! Another 2017 goal for SBACC, is to work with Military Veterans by introducing a program called Project V.A.L.O.R. (Veterans Aspiring to Lead Our Rescues). This program will allow us to work with veterans suffering from PTSD. Veterans will work with our shelter dogs in a setting that allows them to socialize with one another, learn coping skills and provide enrichment to our shelter animals. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 25 SBACC looks forward to increasing our fundraising efforts to attain our Mission Statement goal of adding a "catio" (cat patio)to the facility as well as building a It will be the mission of South Bend dog park across from the shelter in 2017. Our hope is to attract more Animal Care and Control to: promote residents to our area and start changing the perception of SBACC from and enforce the humane treatment of being viewed simply as a "shelter"to an "animal-based community animals; protect the public and its center". These physical improvements, combined with our community property by enforcing the City's animal- outreach programs, will help us serve our community in a much more related laws; educate and encourage proactive way. responsible pet ownership; educate the public on its rights and responsibilities SBACC has also added staff that will also allow us to increase animal regarding animals. welfare enforcement. Our goal is to strategically focus on problems in our community with regard to backyard breeders, hoarders, Vision Statement abandonments, and dogfighting. Enforcement will include education as To enhance the lives of the residents of well as holding animal owners accountable for the welfare of their South Bend by using shelter animals in animals. community outreach programs while instilling the idea of being an Animal- 2017 will be a big year for SBACC and I am looking forward to bringing Based Community Center. A Center that our shelter to the next level of animal welfare and community will serve the needs of our animals and involvement. I look forward to working with the dedicated staff, our community as well. volunteers and animal advocates in our area. We hope to become a Core Values nationwide example of improving lives for both the animals and the people in a community! Accountability y'r Empathy Sincerely, Vision Jenn Gobel Shelter Manager 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 26 SBACC's Responsibilities • Responds to animal-related complaints such as:animal running-at-large, animal nuisance complaints, injured ' wildlife, animal-related public safety hazards, etc. • Enforce animal welfare laws regarding animal cruelty and neglect per city, state and federal regulations + • Investigate bite cases throughout the city _ • Manage a fully-functioning animal adoption center now I - and animal shelter J • Facilitate the adoption of animals tD • Work to alleviate euthanasia in the city animal shelter I • Participate and organize outreach events with the 0 e ' • 0 0 0 �o community to promote and educate the public on animal welfare issues • License domestic animals within city limits • Utilize social media to further the goals of SBACC SBACC's Data & Analysis South Bend Animal Care & Control 2014 2015 2016 When examining SBACC data in 2016 (and going forward), it pet Licenses Sold 1,161 955 700 is important to note that management at the shelter Complaints Investigated 3,802 3,376 2,437 changed in the fall of 2016 and along with it procedures and After Hours Emergency Care 352 293 213 classifications in recording data changed slightly. Domestic Animal Intake 2,690 2,570 2,144 Wildlife Picked Up 1 197 123 150 SBACC licensed 26.7%fewer pets than last year. It is Hearings Held 1 144 . f _. believed this lower number is partly due to a change in Commission Hearings NA 4 10 licensing requirements with the adoption of the revised Pets Reclaimed by owner 356 337 304 animal ordinance in August of 2015. Pets Adopted 296 337 261 Complaints investigated continues to decrease (27.8%fewer Bite Cases 204 205 215 Chicken Permits 33 37 29 than last year). Domestic Animal Intake remains stable with Owner Surrenders 656 620 428 a slight decrease of 4%this year. Long-term,we would like Animals to Rescues 561 750 590 to continue to see these two numbers decrease as the community becomes more educated about proper animal care and ownership. Pets adopted decreased by 22.6% between 2015 and 2016. We expect to see this number increase again as SBACC does more, branding self-promotion and community outreach. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.M13.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 27 The decrease in animals sent to rescues in 2016 is largely due to a change in the management of SBACC and reestablishing those relationships. We want to see this number increase next year. Pets reclaimed by owners continues to remain stable when looked at as a percentage of total animal intake. Percent of animals returned to owner divided by total animal intake was 13% in both 2014 and 2015 and increased to 14% in 2016. The consistent push for microchipping animals should cause this percentage to continue to increase in the future. Domestic animal intake continued to slowly decrease over the past three years. We hope to see this number continue to decrease as owners are made more aware of the importance of not letting animals run loose, of not tying dogs up outside and increasing the number of animals spayed and neutered. The number of owner surrenders also continues to decrease every year; decreasing 34.8%since 2014. Through community education and outreach,we hope to see this number continue to decrease as well. Euthanasia Rates Euthanasia Rates In 2016,SBACC continued to work towards decreasing euthanasia rates for both cats and dogs. 71.9% In 2014, 71.9%of cats that came into SBACC were s7 s% euthanized. In 2016,that number dropped to 54%! 54.0". In 2014, 31.2%of dogs that entered SBACC were euthanized. In 2016,we saw the euthanasia rate 31.2% continue to decrease overall at 29.9% despite a slight 25.5% 29.9% increase from 2015. We are still euthanizing less than the national average of 31%for dogs! 2014 2015 2016 -Dog Euthanasia -Cat Euthanasia Distribution of Animal Outcomes As mentioned above, our hope is that,through marketing and community outreach,we will see the number of strays decrease,the number of owner surrenders decrease,the number of animals transferred to rescues and rehabs increase, and the number of adoptions increase (as a percent of total intake). Please see next page for distribution numbers and graph. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Re, MI31017 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 28 Distribution of Animal Outcomes Animal Distribution —Retum to Owner —Adoption =Rescue/Rehab Dog 2014 2015 2016 Intake 1,413 1,324 1,132 29.4% Returned to Owner 324 316 288 27.5% Adoption 204 251 179 Rescue/Rehab 347 381 285 Euthanasia 441 337 338 19.0% Cat 2014 2015 2016 13.8% 14.2% Intake 1,277 1,139 961 12.1% - Returned to Owner 26 24 16 l3.eso 12.2% Adoption 87 83 66 10.0% Rescue/Rehab 170 342 305 2014 2015 2016 Euthanasia 918 658 519 SBACC's Updates Extended Shelter Hours In order to be more accommodating to people's work schedules, we have extended our weekly hours to remain open until 6:00pm every week night. Animal Control Officer Specialization Officers will have assigned specialties to help increase enforcement in the community to combat issues such as dog fighting, abandonment, hoarding and unlicensed breeders. This will allow us to educate as well as increase accountability for residents who own animals in our community. First Aid and AED Training The staff of South Bend Animal Care and Control attended, and were certified in,first aid and AED. Increasing Transparency In an effort to be more accountable and transparent to our citizens, we are posting our stats to our Facebook page. We continually share our intake, adoption, euthanasia, and transfer to rescue numbers. We also have shared information on how donations are handled. 1300 County-City Building, 227 W.Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 310.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 29 Staff Changes We welcomed several new members to our team in 2016 as well as said good bye to a few. New additions included: • Devon Mills,Animal Control Officer • Jamie Gray, Office Coordinator • Jenn Gobel,Shelter Manager To leave were: • Karin Balsbaugh, Office Coordinator • Matt Harmon, Shelter Manager • Todd Howard,Assistant Shelter Manager SBACC's Successes s Operation Silent Night—25 Days of Christmas A goal for 2016 was to have all dogs adopted before Christmas. We worked with our volunteer photographer,Tami,to take festive photos and featured a new dog every day in hopes of getting him/her adopted. We didn't meet our goal but we had 24 dogs �. adopted in December! Shelter Selfie of the Day In an effort to use Facebook to generate interest in our animals and spur more adoptions,we have begun taking a shelter"selfie of the day". We take a picture of a cute furry critter and post it to Facebook. The photos get many likes and people seem to really enjoy them! ` 1300 County-City Building, 227 W.Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev.MJ 3.10.17 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 30 Code Enforcement's 2017 Goals Active Housing Cases Purge &Scan Files #of active Cases In 2017 Code Enforcement plans to continue to make great strides toward Remaining becoming a paperless office. We will continue to purge files annually. Additionally, 2006 25 we are hoping to soon begin the scanning process on all remaining files. 2007 34 2008 60 Audit Housing Files in Naviline 2009 42 2010 34 To not only follow-up on older cases, but to prepare for transitioning housing 2011 101 records to Accela,we need to audit all active housing cases in Naviline. We will 2012 170 2013 176 have the inspectors look at all their remaining properties to see if they have been 2014 135 repaired yet, and if not, bring them in for a hearing. 2015 271 2016 403 Code Enforcement Trucks We will continue replacing our inspector fleet vehicles with midsize four-wheel drive pick-up trucks. Trucks will allow the inspectors to quickly address small environmental violations r/such as trash and small cut backs to clear vegetation blocking I signs. Trucks will also be more effective at navigating — alleyways (especially in the winter). r—�� 01P, Code Enforcement Outreach With the welcomed addition of Tracy Skibins as our Representation of Truck Deputy Director, community outreach is something she will passionately pursue. Tracy, along with the team,will be involved in diverse community service projects and events as well as sharing community-based research and resources. The overall goal of the Code Enforcement Outreach initiative is to share resources, and work together with citizens,to gain voluntary compliance, cooperation, and to highlight the spirit of personal responsibility for the well-being of our community. Our goal is to encourage a safe, healthy, attractive neighborhood for all our residents. Tracy will also work with the team to promote a positive image of Code Enforcement by continuing to foster a culture that is approachable, knowledgeable, and helpful. She is excited to join the Code Enforcement and can't wait to get started! 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Re, NIJ 0 2016 Annual Report— Department of Code Enforcement 31 SBACC's 2017 Goals G-' �' ' ► i i iii; Box Trucks w In 2017,we will start replacing our Animal Control Officers' vans with truck chassis with added animal box systems. The boxes are climate controlled and ventilated. The "boxes" will be transferrable to future truck chassis. Representation of the Box Truck Project V.A.L.O.R. (Veterans Aspiring to Lead Our Rescues) Project V.A.L.O.R. will allow us to work with veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Veterans will work with our shelter dogs in a setting that allows them to socialize with one another, learn coping skills and provide enrichment to our shelter animals. Good Dog Tech: Proactive Solutions for Problem Pups We are hoping to make a positive difference in our community in the way it views pet ownership. Starting in 2017,we have teamed up with a certified trainer from Well Balanced Dog, West Todd,to host pet ownership training classes. Every class will be divided into three parts: Dog Theory, Dog Husbandry, and a Question &Answer session. There is a minimum donation of$20 per class Good gogTech and a waiver must be signed prior to participation. Classes are limited to just 20 people per class. Proactive Solutions For Problem Pups Dog Fighting Prevention Seminar In February 2017, our staff attended a seminar hosted by the Humane Society of the United States to learn ways to prevent dog fighting. We learned what types of items we can watch for in yards that may be indicative of dog fighting. Project H.E.A.L. (Heart, Education, Achievement, Leadership) �p,GC y In addition to helping animals in our community, we also want to help our neighbors .' '.�-9 through Project H.E.A.L. At the shelter,we will be working with at-risk youth to teach shelter dogs basic manners. This training will encourage humane education, compassion and empathy. Not only does this educate and help our youth, it is great enrichment for dl�, a our dogs and will increase their chances of being adopted. Achie i 1300 County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601 Rev M,3W L,