Jay waits to approve livestock ordinance

The first reading of a new livestock ordinance in Jay on the agenda Monday night didn't happen with Mayor Shon Moye saying the town needed to have a workshop to discuss ordinances, noting there were things the town of Jay could do better. The council set the workshop for 5 p.m. Monday, Aug. 21 at city hall, prior to the 6 p.m. council meeting.

The agenda for Monday's meeting called to amend a 1973 ordinance dealing with livestock inside the city limits cutting the distance from 200 feet to 100 feet from another dwelling. However, the proposed ordinance said the term 'livestock or other animal' did not include poultry, dogs or cats.

Brenda Godwin addressed the council wanting to know if it included ducks as well as chickens, saying she had a neighbor who had ducks that were free to cross through the neighborhood and 'crap' everywhere.

Godwin asked if chickens are allowed, will they be required to be in pens with top?

Councilman Josh Holloway said having loose livestock, whether chickens or ducks would violate the livestock ordinance.

Godwin noted the city didn't have an animal control officer, which is currently being handled by Santa Rosa County. She added that the county was very lax in responding to animal complaints.

"We have feral cats running all over town," Godwin said.

She said she caught one cat but couldn't keep up, noting she saw one cat go into the trap, eat the food and leave.

"We just don't want to create new problems," Godwin told the council. "We have city limits and ordinances and they need to be enforced."

Godwin then shifted toward nuisances and houses and trailers that are deemed unsafe to live in. She said there are about 10 abandoned trailers behind the hospital.

"Why aren't we enforcing the ordinance?" she asked.

Town Attorney Steve Cozart said the council could declare the property a nuisance and send letters to the property owners. If the property is not cleaned up, the city could clean the property up and put a lien against that property.

Mayor Owens noted there was a cost associated with cleaning up nuisance property, noting the town could spend in excess of $10,000 to remove a dilapidated trailer and clean up the lot. He noted the town receives about $180,000 a year in ad valorem taxes and the council is trying to keep the town afloat.

Godwin suggested having a clean-up day across the town.

"It seems to me if we can't enforce our ordinances any better, get rid of them," Godwin said.

She also asked "Who would be the chicken police?"

"We don't want everybody to have chickens," Holloway said. "We want people to have rights."

Holloway noted that Jay was an agricultural community. He added that it was already legal for residents of Jay to have chickens, the new ordinances simply stated they had to be 100 feet from another dwelling instead of 200 feet.