Overview
- Johnson reaffirmed Susan Cappello’s permanent appointment, pending City Council approval, after volunteers described unsanitary and overcrowded conditions at the city-run shelter.
- Seventeen alderpeople, led by Gilbert Villegas and Ruth Cruz, set an April 1 deadline in a letter urging a nationwide search for the executive director role.
- Cappello announced a plan to get each of roughly 240 dogs out of kennels daily, saying too many currently leave only once a week.
- The administration said CACC’s 2026 budget will rise by nearly $700,000 — about a 10% increase — to bolster staffing, operations and programming.
- Department data show intake climbed from 13,419 animals in 2023 to 18,337 in 2025, with the dog euthanasia rate holding near 29% as adoptions and transfers reached record levels.