Northampton Borough has no plans to allow an animal shelter to operate from a building it owns.

At their meeting Dec. 5, borough council members and Manager Gene Zarayko complained about a story in last week's Northampton Press, "Women seeking second chances for stray animals in Northampton Borough."

The article states Dawn Perl, of Northampton, and Brandi Trautman, of Bath, hope to open a shelter in a building located behind the borough's wastewater treatment plant.

Zarayko said the borough owns the building in question.

An individual ran a shelter there without borough funding until 2007. Its closing was a "headache," Zarayko said Friday. Many of the 90 to 100 cats living there were diseased.

"I don't think council wants to go through that again," he said.

Zarayko told The Press Friday the borough's animal control officer uses the building for stray animals and is successful at finding owners or new homes.

Another animal shelter, Peaceable Kindgom, is located nearby in Whitehall. And, Northampton County also may open a shelter.

"We got to wait to see what the county is going to do," he said at the meeting.

Council President John Yurish said at the meeting a woman several months ago requested the shelter be reopened.

"I said no," Yurish said.

"One of these two women is from Bath. Why don't they open a shelter in Bath?" Zarayko said Friday.

Editor Johanna S. Billings also contributed to this story.