Monday July 19, 2021 Update

Welcome to the New and Improved Daily Update!  We appreciate your feedback on the daily update, and after more than a year, it was time for a change.  Each day of the week will focus on a different theme.  Upcoming events, news you can use and social media will be constants each day; other topic areas will change to give it a bit more variety.  And - at least for the time being - no Covid-19 numbers.  

I hope you enjoy the new version of the Daily Update.  Keep us posted on how it is working for you.  

UPCOMING CITY EVENTS

AuthorLink with Katherine Cowley I July 21 7:00 pm

Food Truck Roundup I July 22 5:00 - 8:00 pm
Pioneer Day Extravaganza I July 24 10:00am - 2:00pm

Learn It: Activism for Busy People I July 27 7:00 pm

Book Trivia Night I July 28 7:00 pm
Movie in the Courtyard: Wonder Woman 1984 I July 30 9:30 pm
The Diaries of Adam and Eve I July 29 - August 21
Paint Night I August 3 7:00 pm
Recipe Swap: Breakfast I August 4 7:00 - 8:00 pm
Intro to Studio Production I August 4 7:00 - 8:00 pm
Rock The Canyon I August 28 4:00 pm - 8:00pm
Blue Skies Concert Series I Wednesdays through September 22
Teen Film Contest Screening and Awards Ceremony I July 29 7:00pm

NEWS YOU CAN USE

• The unrest in South Africa has made global news as South Africans attempt to rally and protect property as violence rages. The damages look devastating.
• Tokyo has entered a new state of emergency as the Olympics draw near. No audience is permitted to be in attendance due to the new state of emergency.
• Love tacos? Want to get paid to eat, talk about, and post about tacos? McCormick might have a job for you! They are hiring a "Director of Taco Relations". Yes, really.
• Two friends decided to visit every city in Utah. It took them 2 years to complete their journey.

YOUR VOICE

One of the ideas that came through the earlier survey was the desire to make the update more interactive.  So, today we are asking you to check out this section (on the right -->) where we will include polls and questions for you, as well as a form where you can highlight a coworker or tell us about what you do for the city! This can range from new babies or weddings to just wanting to give a shout-out to a fellow employee. Fill out the questions on the right, then upload pictures for us to share using the link below!  We will post your responses in upcoming editions of the update. 

UPLOAD PICTURES HERE!

PROVO SOCIAL MEDIA

HOT-BUTTON ITEMS IN PROVO

So, each week my plan is to highlight a current topic that the City administration or council is dealing with.  Part of the feedback we received on the update was a desire to have more substantive material to help employees understand these current issues. 

This week, we begin with my take on animal euthanasia at the South Utah Valley Animal Shelter that takes front and center at tomorrow's city council work meeting.

Tomorrow afternoon, the Municipal Council will be discussing the euthanasia practices for unadopted animals at the South Utah Valley Animal Shelter.  As you might have seen in the media (print or social), both the South Utah Valley Shelter and the North Utah Valley Shelter have used carbon monoxide gas as they means of euthanizing animals.  Currently, animal rights advocates are asking the shelters to consider using lethal injection as the method of euthanasia.  Recently, some of these advocates appeared before the Orem City Council with similar requests, and their appearance was preceded by protests along State Street near the Orem City Center.

Nationally, about 2/3 of the animals that are housed in a public animal shelter are not placed or adopted and are eventually euthanized.  That total constitutes about 3.7 million animals each year.  Sometimes animals are euthanized to prevent overcrowding, but sometimes the animals destroyed are sick, aggressive or injured.  

About 20 years ago, Utah County made the decision to consolidate animal shelters in the County into two locations - one in North County and one in South County.  Cities that had their own shelters (including Provo) closed them and consolidated with the County.  Two major reasons were cost-effectiveness and giving the shelters a dedicated revenue stream from the County and the member cities.  Each shelter is operated by an independent special service district board, with each city and the county appointing one board member. The building and land are owned by Utah County.  Revenues come from the cities and the county pro-rata based on number of animal that each entity brings annually to the shelter.

It will be very interesting to see how the discussion goes in tomorrow's work session.  This is one of those issues where there is an intersection of passion, policy and practice.  

FUN STUFF

These are the two memes I meant to include last week.  With today's rainstorms, we might be thinking differently about our weather - healthy rain would be good; flash flooding not so much.  

Hope you liked a little refresh on the update.  Watch tomorrow for a little different take.

Wayne