2006-2007 Annual Report - Santa Rosa County

Public Services DepartmentThe Santa Rosa County Public Services Department consists of five divisions:inspections and compliance, community planning, zoning, and development;emergency management, animal services, and veteran services. Although our dutiesare very diverse, a central theme for us is customer service. The slogan we adoptedfor the 2007 calendar year was “ Making a Difference … One Customer At a Time.”We believe it is important to show the customer we are serving, that our desireis to assist them to the best of our ability. We believe by teaching and requiringteamwork, our employees develop a vision to assist the customer beyond the wallsof the particular division to which they are assigned. Our hope is to do our part tohelp Santa Rosa County continue to be one of the most desirable communities in thecountry to live, work, and play.Animal ServicesTony GomillionPublic Services Director6051 Old Bagdad Hwy.Suite 202Milton, FL 32583(850) 981-7031 Office(850) 623-1208 Faxtonyg@santarosa.fl.govAnimal services operates the county’s animal shelter and receives animals from variousorigins including owners surrendering their pets, stray animals that are wanderingthe streets, nuisance animals causing destruction of property, aggressive animalsendangering the public, and injured animals that need medical care. Additionally, anadoption center is located at the shelter. The animals found available for adoption arescreened for heartworms, given vaccinations, de-wormed, temperament tested, and arein good health before they are placed in adoption. Over 8,000 animals pass throughthe shelter each year. The office of animal services is open to the public Mondaythru Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Animalservices also has an on-call officer who responds to calls dispatched by emergencycommunications, between the hours of 11 p.m. and 6:30 a.m.The staff ofanimal servicesare available24 hours aday, sevendays a week toresidents.Citizen Services at a Glance• Humane traps are available for public use and are distributed on Mondays andTuesdays and can be kept thru Friday at no cost. These traps can capture feral cats,domestic cats, dogs, opossums, raccoons, rabbits and armadillos.• Discount spay and neuter program for income-eligible residents. As part of a onetimegrant of $18,000 from “Florida Animal Friend, Inc.” license plate programgrant, approved applicants who already own their pet pay only $20 for dogs and $15for cats to have their pets spayed or neutered at a participating veterinarian.12