Round Rock City Council unanimously approved adding the city of Georgetown to the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter interlocal agreement at its April 24 meeting. Round Rock Cedar Park, Leander and Hutto make up the current member cities, and each will have to vote on the agreement for Georgetown to join.

Digging deeper

The interlocal agreement is the first step for the WCRAS to merge with the Georgetown Animal Shelter, which would also include expanding the regional facility. Georgetown is wholly responsible for funding the $15 million expansion, expected to provide capacity for all members through 2035.

According to previous Community Impact reporting, the proposed WCRAS expansion includes:
  • At least 106 additional dog kennels
  • Two new two-story buildings
  • Consolidating staff members into one building
  • Solutions for animal capacity concerns and other projected needs
If passed, Georgetown would lease its animal shelter to WCRAS during construction. The merger would not require any additional funding from Round Rock, according to city documents.

The history


The county and member cities formed the WCRAS in 2006, and approved its first expansion in 2016. WCRAS member cities approved a memorandum of understanding and an interlocal agreement draft for the merger in May.

"The ILA is the second of two council actions needed to bring Georgetown on as a full partner in the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter," Director of Finance Kevin Klosterboer said.

Looking ahead

All of the member cities will consider the ILA in the near future, with the Commissioner Court meeting to finalize the agreement expected in May, Klosterboer said.


If the member cities and county approve the agreement, the merger would take effect July 5, per city of Georgetown documents.