Decatur wrestles with animal ordinances
Posted on Wednesday, August 20, 2008
ì I would like to commend everyone as far as keeping expenses down, but I think we can do better, î Mayor Bill Montgomery told the council.
The cityís lay-off of three employees last month increased the payroll expenses for July because the employees were paid for their vacation time and sick leave.
Councilwoman Linda Martin presented several more ways the city could cut expenses through the rest of the year.
The city could reduce the monthly floor cleaning for City Hall to an as needed basis. Buffing the floors downstairs, as well as upstairs in the community building costs the city between $ 100 and $ 150 a month. The floors will still be mopped and swept by city maintenance workers.
The monthly library fund used to buy books could be reduced from $ 4, 230 to $ 2, 000, as well, Martin said.
The council may need to look at changing the percentage of the cityís money each department gets when next yearís budget is planned, she said.
Montgomery said the economic crunch is beginning to hurt people, causing the cityís sales tax revenue to decline.
In other business, council members voted to allow city attorney Tom Smith to negotiate a settlement with Kenneth Durrett of Alpha Environmental Resources, Inc.
Durrett filed a lawsuit with the city for $ 11, 821. 05. The city purchased aerobic bacteria from Durrett for the wastewater treatment plant last spring, but the city only paid a portion of the bill when the bacteria proved to be defective.
Smith advised council members to settle the lawsuit for a smaller amount of money rather than let it drag on through court for years.
City council members looked at Gravetteís animal-control ordinance as the discussion about strengthening the cityís policies for pet owners continued.
The issue was raised last month, when community member Sundi Shaw brought a problem with her neighborís barking dogs before the council. The dogs barked throughout the night, keeping the Shaws awake, she said, but police couldnít do anything to resolve the problem because no nuisance ordinance in place.
The council looked at Gentryís animal control ordinance last month, and Mayor Bill Montgomery presented them with Gravetteís ordinance to study this month.
The ordinance is 16 pages long and outlines nearly every possible eventuality for all animals, which it defines as any vertebrate excluding Homo Sapiens and cats.
It has specific policies for keeping livestock ó poultry, rabbits, horses, goats, cows and hogs ó wild animals and vicious dogs. It also requires dog owners, as well as the owners of any animal establishment, to obtain a license.
Police chief Terry Luker reported there have been no more calls to police about the barking dog issue. Decaturís animal control officer was one of the city employees laid off last month.
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