Costa Mesa is hunting for a new long-term animal services provider after its previous contractor collapsed under the weight of missed deadlines and safety lapses — but the city drafted its new bidding rules without ever bringing them to the volunteer committee created specifically to watch over animal care in the city.
The city released its request for proposals on September 1, and the bidding window closed Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles Times. Costa Mesa has not yet selected a provider for the permanent contract, which is slated to begin January 1, 2027 and run for three to five years, with the chosen group expected to take in strays, treat sick and injured animals, and work alongside police animal control officers.
Notably, the new RFP looks a lot like the proposal Westminster Adoption Group and Services, or WAGS, submitted on May 27 to serve as the city’s temporary provider, the paper reports. WAGS chief executive Michelle Russillo declined to comment on the similarity.
A Contract That Fell Apart
The city’s previous arrangement with Priceless Pet Rescue unraveled after the nonprofit struggled to comply with its five-year, $480,000-a-year agreement, signed in April 2024. Costa Mesa Police Chief Joyce LaPointe issued a notice of violation on March 19, giving the group 60 days to fix the problems — among them, Priceless Pets’ failure to build a full-service shelter inside city limits and its inability to staff the facility around the clock for after-hours drop-offs, per the same report. The notice also cited two separate dog escapes, one of which left an animal struck by a car and euthanized, according to an earlier Los Angeles Times report…