After three rounds of public comment, the Bellevue Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended that the City Council adopt an animal-control ordinance that limits the number of dogs and cats kept in a house and establishes a minimum acreage for horses. The ordinance also spells out rules for keeping chickens in town.
The decision came during a P&Z meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 5.
"We heard from many animal owners in the city while putting this together," Planning Director Craig Eckles said in an interview. "This was done very professionally."
The proposed ordinance allows no more than four dogs and two cats per house in the city, and requires horse owners to have at least a 6,000-square-foot lot per horse.
In order for city residents to have fresh eggs, four chickens per household can be kept under the new ordinance, but no roosters.
A push by the Planning Department to limit the amount of time a dog can be kept on a chain failed to make it into the new ordinance. The department had plans to require a dog owner to free their dogs after a 12-hour period on a chain, but abandoned the plan because some dog owners have unfenced back yards and have no other means of controlling their dogs.
"The time limit was removed," said Eckles, who remains concerned about dogs running at large in the city. A recent community survey turned up many complaints of dogs running wild.
"People complained about this at every meeting," he said. "We already have laws against dogs at large. It just has to be enforced."
Tony Evans: tevans@mtexpress.com
