Bradley County Commission Vice Chairman Jeff Yarber, left, argues against a proposal to rescind a recent warning issued to the SPCA of Bradley County for no longer accepting animals from Cleveland residents. Commissioner Chairman Louie Alford, right, listens.CLEVELAND, Tenn. — The Bradley County Commission has reversed a Dec. 1 decision to issue a warning to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the county’s nonprofit animal shelter provider, for not accepting animals from Cleveland residents.
The 8-6 vote to issue the warning was made despite the opinion of County Attorney Crystal Freiberg that the SCPA is not in violation of its $80,000 annual agreement with the county by limiting animal drop offs to residents living outside of the city as of Nov. 1.
The warning gave the SPCA 30 days to begin accepting animals from city residents again or potentially be faced with termination of its agreement with the county.
On Monday, an 8-5 vote was made in favor of a measure proposed by Commissioner Dan Rawls, a member of the SPCA board of directors, to reverse the warning.
“I think it was naïve to think that the original contract was inclusive of the city,” Rawls said. “The other thing is, there is no breach [of contract], according to the county attorney.”