Vermilion County Board Chair Stephen Miller announced the permanent hiring of Ryan Goodner to be Director of the Animal Shelter. Ryan Goodner was only recently appointed a member of the County Board in April of this year and resigned to become interim director on June 26th. At a Health and Education Committee meeting on July 17 th a standing -room- only crowd was present for public comment and questioned the change and raised concerns about the condition of the shelter, particularly the HVAC system. Difficulties with the HVAC system have existed for some years and last year in June the air conditioning totally shut down and several private businesses offered help to restore the system. Some public comments questioned the experience of Ryan Goodner who has considerable law enforcement experience, but no listed experience in animal welfare or animal containment. The salary for Ryan Goodner was set at $100,000. Kasey Snyder, who listed experience in animal welfare, was paid approximately $80,000. At the last full County Board meeting, two current board members expressed frustration with the process leading to the termination of Kasey Snyder and the appointment of Ryan Goodner. While the County Board Chair Steve Miller has said decisions will be made about the facility, we have no details yet.
However, Chairman Miller said Ryan Goodner will be meeting with communities that contract for services from the Animal Control Department and Shelter. The Board has recently discussed the cost of services to the City of Danville and that contract will be under review as well.