By Sara Beth Williams–
During a meeting that lasted more than four hours, the Citrus Heights City Council on Wednesday approved a pilot phase lease agreement with FieldHaven Feline Center.
After hearing over two dozen comments, council members all voiced their agreement with multiple nonprofit rescues, veterinary clinics, and volunteer rescuers that the City of Citrus Heights has a feral cat crisis.
FieldHaven Feline Center is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that currently operates in Lincoln, according to the nonprofit’s website. City staff said the center expressed interest in establishing a Citrus Heights location and submitted a proposal to lease a city-owned property at 7555 Old Auburn Rd.
Many small animal rescue representatives, volunteer rescuers, and kitten fosterers lamented the high cost of spaying and neutering, saying the vet bills run in the hundreds and even up to $1,000 when accounting for the cost of spay or neuter surgery, micro-chipping, and vaccines combined. Councilmember Tim Schaefer and Vice Mayor MariJane Lopez-Taff agreed, providing their own stories of having to pay high vet bills for care for their cats.
“This clinic is not for me,” Schaefer said, adding that the clinic is designed for those in the city who are rescuers, nonprofits, or who live with low or fixed incomes.
Other speakers lamented the lack of availability of low-cost spay and neuter clinics. Rescuer Melissa Hayden said on Monday that there are three low-cost spay and neuter options: Community Spay and Neuter, which is located roughly 13 miles from Citrus Heights off Bradshaw; FieldHaven Feline Center, which is located 20 miles away in Lincoln; and Animal Spay and Neuter in Auburn, located about 24 miles away. Hayden, along with multiple rescuers, said the lack of availability is the problem because shelters are at capacity, and spay and neuter clinics accept very low numbers of spay and neuter requests for feral cats.
Community Spay and Neuter accepts two spay and neuter requests per month, per household, but Hayden said calling to get an appointment is like calling a radio station, where everyone calls all at once on Monday morning at 7 a.m. Hayden said she’d called the clinic “600 times to get appointments.”
While small nonprofit rescues and volunteer rescuers pleaded with the city to approve the lease agreement, local veterinary clinic managers and owners spoke out in opposition, questioning the legality of the process in which the lease was brought forth and asking the city to “put a pause” on the approval of the lease so that it could be revised. Some business representatives said there was contradicting language in the lease, while others said the lease lacked specifics about what residents would qualify for free or low-cost spay and neuter services.
Initially, Mayor Jayna Karpinski-Costa questioned City Manager Ash Feeney about the possibility of making some amendments to the lease to accommodate some of the concerns of local businesses. Feeney said that he would attempt to work with local veterinary clinic owners, but that lease details might not make everyone happy.
Some community members and veterinarian representatives questioned why a Request for Proposal wasn’t issued. City Attorney Ryan Jones explained that the lease did not require an RFP because the project is not a public project requiring construction, and there’s enough public community benefit, that the proposed $1 lease amount is not a gift of public funds.
“These partnerships are hard,” Feeney said of city and nonprofit partnerships. “That’s why you don’t see them happen very often. They take a investment on both sides to get done.”
The City Council voted unanimously to move forward with the lease agreement and received a round of applause from a full audience.
“We’re so happy with the outcome.” Makenna Gwaltney, executive director of FieldHaven, said on Thursday. “We’re so excited to share with the community.”
FieldHaven will have a temporary 18-month lease at the cost of one dollar. Gwaltney said the nonprofit is investing in multiple pieces of equipment themselves and has also received some equipment donations.
Potential services to be offered include spay and neuter surgeries, vaccinations, microchipping, lifesaving procedures for community and owned cats and dogs, and basic veterinary support for animals in the city’s care at the city’s discretion.
Pricing for spaying and neutering is $65 for feral cats and $150 for owned cats, including vaccines and microchipping, according to FieldHaven’s website. The Sentinel found that typical veterinary costs for spay and neuter surgeries can be hundreds of dollars and don’t include the cost of microchipping or vaccines.
If the lease continues beyond the pilot phase, FieldHaven would pay $2,500 per month ($30,000 annually) for a three-year term. Additionally, the city will then receive 250 spay and neuter vouchers for cats annually.
The city said FieldHaven anticipates opening within the first quarter of 2026 after some minor tenant improvements are completed.
