The Albert Lea Animal Shelter and the Freeborn County Humane Society may soon be under the same roof.

Albert Lea Police Chief Dwaine Winkels said animal control officer Leah Stoltz has had four meetings with the Humane Society board and they are now at a point to enter into a contract to share the city’s shelter.

Humane Society Director Christa Stieler said as part of the discussions, the nonprofit organization is hopeful to be able to construct an addition through a potential grant this spring. The grant would pay for adding a space for cats and a quarantine area for incoming pets.

Currently the shelter has mainly dog kennels. It is in Frank Hall Park near the city shed and the former sewer plant.

The Freeborn County Humane Society has no shelter but has been in the hunt for one for years. The group last year had hoped to build one outside of city limits. Present discussions include having the Humane Society rent the city shelter for a minimal cost and then having them provide a full-time employee to take care of the animals, Stieler and Winkels said. Volunteers would be found to clean out cages and to perform other tasks.

“We are really excited about it,” Stieler said. “This is our opportunity to get a shelter.”

She said she is hopeful that once the contract is made more official, the transition will run smoothly.

Within the next month, Stieler said, she is going to be phasing into the shelter more and giving more time to it. And the contract should be in place before the end of the year at the latest, she said.

Winkels said the city has been working on and off with the local Humane Society for several years. Last October, Stoltz was hired on to the department with one of her main duties being to work out an agreement between the Humane Society and the city.

Over the years the Humane Society has struggled monetarily as a nonprofit organization. It currently has an office on Clark Street.

In turn, the city has struggled with not being able to devote enough resources to animal-control issues in past years.

When bringing up the idea at last week’s preagenda meeting before the Albert Lea City Council, Winkels said the hardest part of the arrangement would be the relationship between the two entities and any possible personality conflicts that might come up.

Otherwise, there are very few negative sides to the issue.

The arrangement would free up time for Stoltz to be out working more with animal-control issues in the field, instead of being at the shelter for as long.

The Humane Society would get a shelter and would be able to help people adopt pets easier.

“I think it will be a really good thing,” Stieler said. “This will be well worth it.”