[1:42] city of new smyrna beach.

[1:45] It's wednesday, SEPTEMBER the

[1:45] 2nd, 2026.

[1:49] Seven would you please call the

[1:49] roll?

[1:49] Yes.

[1:53] Chair DR. Leonard here.

[1:53] Member I'm sorry?

[1:56] Member strickland here.

[2:03] Member mcgrady you're

[2:09] .

[2:10] Do we have members that are

[2:11] current on the board that are

[2:11] absent?

[2:13] That is correct.

[2:14] >> members hoffman and engle

[2:14] are absent.

[2:17] Okay.

[2:18] Do we know where those excused

[2:18] absences?

[2:20] We have heard from ingle.

[2:24] You did.

[2:28] Okay.

[2:29] >> a board member you had an

[2:29] opportunity to review the

[2:32] minutes of the MARCH 4th

[2:32] meeting.

[2:36] >> then he comments changes.

[2:40] No, we we think you we have a

[2:40] motion then to accept the

[2:42] minutes from the wednesday

[2:46] MARCH 4th meeting.

[2:47] Call for motion.

[2:51] Motion to accept motion to

[2:52] accept.

[2:52] We have a second.

[2:53] We have a second.

[2:54] >> you're going to call a roll

[2:58] for that vote or can we voice

[2:58] vote?

[2:58] I'll call roll.

[2:59] Okay.

[3:02] Member strickland, I.

[3:02] Yes.

[3:05] Member mcgrady.

[3:06] Yes.

[3:06] Chair DR. Leonard.

[3:12] Yes

[3:13] .

[3:13] >> okay.

[3:17] our our old business is going

[3:17] to be today's new business.

[3:18] >> yes.

[3:24] So we move right right on.

[3:24] Unless there's any old business

[3:26] that.

[3:26] >> okay.

[3:29] So we'll move on to new

[3:32] business and let officer wolfe

[3:39] address the board

[3:47] .

[3:48] Okay.

[3:52] Good afternoon, members of the

[3:52] board.

[3:55] Happy to be here once again.

[3:56] >> this is an exciting meeting

[3:56] for me.

[3:57] I'm very happy to finally put

[3:59] these ordinances in front

[3:59] of you.

[4:00] This is a project that I've

[4:02] been working on for a long time

[4:03] so I'm very excited to have

[4:04] here in front of you guys

[4:04] today.

[4:07] We can make some considerations

[4:07] some strengthening of animal

[4:08] welfare laws within our

[4:10] community, ensure that we're

[4:11] always making sure our animals

[4:12] are valued and protected.

[4:14] >> in front of your package you

[4:15] should have the entirety of all

[4:16] of the ordinance changes.

[4:19] I highlighted some of the key

[4:20] ones in this powerpoint here,

[4:20] some new ones that we're

[4:22] introducing some verbiage

[4:23] changes and some things that

[4:24] are going to be major overhauls

[4:30] to the ordinance

[4:36] that work.

[4:39] There we go.

[4:40] >> starting off we're going to

[4:40] change our fines so previously

[4:42] the fine amounts varied

[4:43] depending on the spay neuter

[4:44] status of the animal.

[4:46] We completely remove that there

[4:47] should not be a higher or lower

[4:51] penalty just based off the fact

[4:51] if your animal is spay neuter

[4:52] all violations are going to

[4:54] carry the same fines so your

[4:57] initial first violation will be

[4:58] $150 for a first offense, $250

[5:00] for a second offense and then

[5:01] up to $500 for your third

[5:04] offense.

[5:05] >> a new law that we'll be

[5:05] introducing is interference

[5:08] with animal control or humane

[5:08] society personnel.

[5:09] All the verbiage is there up on

[5:11] the board for you guys.

[5:12] But essentially this law is

[5:15] designed to combat the people

[5:15] who are coming into the

[5:16] shelters and telling you I

[5:17] found this stray dog in the

[5:19] street.

[5:19] It's not mine.

[5:20] They're providing false

[5:20] information and they're

[5:23] refusing to provide rabies

[5:23] vaccinations, ownership status,

[5:24] anything like that.

[5:27] It also protects the humane

[5:28] society itself.

[5:29] The southeast militia, he MAY

[5:29] say.

[5:31] So any person cannot tear down,

[5:32] deface, burn, destroy or

[5:35] otherwise injure any impounding

[5:36] facility or enclosure.

[5:37] So be anywhere with the

[5:39] southeast humane society and

[5:39] then no person without proper

[5:42] authorization and shall

[5:42] release, remove or attempt to

[5:43] release any animal from the

[5:44] custody of the humane society

[5:49] or the animal control officer.

[5:50] Another new law that we'll be

[5:53] adding in is the duty of animal

[5:53] owners to be responsible.

[5:54] So again all the verbiage is

[5:57] there on your screen shall be

[5:58] the duty of every animal owner

[5:58] to or anyone having the animal

[6:00] in their care custody and

[6:01] control to exercise exercise

[6:01] reasonable care take all

[6:04] necessary steps and precautions

[6:05] to prevent and protect other

[6:05] people from injury.

[6:09] >> damage which MAY result from

[6:09] their animal.

[6:10] So if your neighbor's dog gets

[6:12] out and attacks your dog or

[6:13] they get out and attack your

[6:14] child or they get out and

[6:15] destroy your car or whatever it

[6:16] is, this ordinance would govern

[6:19] that.

[6:20] Another new law will be adding

[6:21] is the mistreatment of domestic

[6:21] animals.

[6:24] Again, a lot of verbiage there

[6:24] on your screens.

[6:27] We do not currently have an

[6:27] ordinance that will blanket

[6:28] addresses all mistreatment

[6:28] of animals.

[6:31] I'll show you what the previous

[6:32] ordinance was here at the end

[6:32] of this one.

[6:35] >> this is a step between a

[6:35] city ordinance violation and

[6:36] animal cruelty.

[6:39] So before we get to the point

[6:39] of animal cruelty where we're

[6:41] arresting people, this gives us

[6:42] the opportunity to hold them

[6:43] accountable and give them the

[6:45] opportunity to correct those

[6:46] issues prior to having to do

[6:47] some form of law enforcement

[6:49] action such as jail or seizures

[6:50] for dog things like that.

[6:53] >> animals cannot be kept in

[6:54] unsanitary conditions where

[6:57] there's vermin harming debris,

[6:58] insect infestation, no

[6:58] bloodletting so no dog.

[7:01] Maybe our animal MAY be allowed

[7:02] to bleed causing the death or

[7:04] domestic death of a domestic

[7:05] animal.

[7:05] Animal abuse, any type

[7:08] of mistreatment as far as food

[7:09] ,water and appropriate

[7:09] shelters will all be addressed

[7:12] by this ordinance.

[7:13] But for you when you when you

[7:16] come to a new page on this,

[7:17] could you tell us the page

[7:17] number?

[7:18] We are on the ordinance so we

[7:20] can refer to that?

[7:21] >> I don't have that with me.

[7:22] Michelle do you happen to have

[7:22] it?

[7:25] Oh, I don't have that with me.

[7:25] >> okay.

[7:26] I MAY just I MAY just stop you.

[7:28] Okay.

[7:29] Yeah.

[7:30] So let them know because if you

[7:30] want to go back, let me know

[7:31] from new york.

[7:32] I can leave this one on page

[7:32] 15.

[7:36] >> okay.

[7:36] Do you want to move backwards

[7:37] to the previous ones you want?

[7:38] No, I have a couple

[7:39] of questions but we can go back

[7:40] into further expansion on that

[7:43] this is one that I'm very proud

[7:43] to bring to the city.

[7:46] No person other than a licensed

[7:47] veterinarian shall crop the

[7:48] ears of a dog or duck the tail

[7:50] of a dog so nobody inside the

[7:51] city MAY modify their dogs ears

[7:55] at home doing their own ear

[7:56] cutting, trimming, tail

[7:56] docking.

[8:00] >> none of that must be done by

[8:00] a vegetarian and must have

[8:01] proof of that.

[8:02] It was done by licensed

[8:03] veterinary and I'm very excited

[8:03] to bring that one into the

[8:04] city.

[8:06] >> this is our current.

[8:07] So this is what it is

[8:07] replacing.

[8:09] So right now our current

[8:10] ordinance says that the owner

[8:11] cannot keep the animal in it,

[8:13] must maintain it in a free

[8:14] of feces waste or to the extent

[8:17] that the prevent the noxious

[8:18] odor offensive odors from

[8:19] escaping into a neighboring

[8:21] rights of land or property.

[8:22] Again, not a lot of area for us

[8:25] to articulate animal cruelty

[8:25] and welfare in there.

[8:28] This new ordinance replacing

[8:29] this one would give us the

[8:29] ability to go further and do

[8:30] all those things that we

[8:32] already discussed updates to

[8:36] the tethering ordinance.

[8:37] >> so currently we do have a

[8:37] tethering ordinance.

[8:38] This is probably the longest

[8:40] section in your guys is back in

[8:41] front of you.

[8:41] So to highlight some of the

[8:42] major changes that we're

[8:44] looking at for that our

[8:45] changing of the verbiage from

[8:48] discouraged to prohibited we

[8:48] are not trying to encourage or

[8:49] just discourage people from

[8:51] tethering their animals.

[8:52] We want to prohibit it unless

[8:53] it's following that ordinance

[8:55] that we're proposing.

[8:56] >> so now a person must remain

[8:57] in sight of the animal so you

[8:59] can't leave your dog tied out

[9:00] unattended for an extended

[9:00] period of time.

[9:03] You must maintain line of sight

[9:04] or some kind of control or

[9:07] visual of that animal.

[9:07] We expand the tethering

[9:08] ordinance from dogs to all

[9:11] animals not an issue that we

[9:11] have seen here in new smyrna

[9:12] beach but it has been an issue

[9:15] in animal welfare.

[9:15] We've seen people tethering

[9:16] cats and other weird critters

[9:19] so to blanket cover that we're

[9:19] going to say all animals

[9:23] clarification restrictions

[9:23] of public and private property

[9:24] right away as easements in

[9:27] neighboring properties that

[9:28] would probably be something to

[9:28] shake and give you guys more

[9:29] of an answer on but that

[9:32] governs you know, how far can

[9:33] the tether extend?

[9:33] Can it reach out to a sidewalk

[9:35] and it could be an easement

[9:35] between the properties and then

[9:36] not allowing the dog to go into

[9:39] your neighboring property.

[9:40] >> new we're going to add

[9:42] operative swivels to each ends

[9:43] of the tether so each end

[9:44] of the tether will be required

[9:46] to have a swivel on it and that

[9:46] will prevent any form

[9:47] of choking or entanglements

[9:47] of the tether.

[9:49] It would be required to swivel

[9:50] on both sides.

[9:50] >> multiple dogs will be

[9:54] required to be on their own

[9:54] individual tether right now

[9:55] they're not to my knowledge is

[9:57] anything in the ordinance that

[9:58] says that you can't clip four

[10:00] dogs to one tether so now we'll

[10:01] have it.

[10:02] >> so each dog must have its

[10:03] own tether.

[10:04] >> the tether must not extend

[10:05] over an object or an edge that

[10:07] could result in strangulation,

[10:07] entanglement, injury or death.

[10:12] So if you have a dock in your

[10:12] backyard maybe you live over on

[10:13] riverside, you have a dock in

[10:15] your backyard, you can't have

[10:15] it so that your dog could hang

[10:19] off of that dock.

[10:22] >> the nuisance guys are on the

[10:23] tethering in the back of a

[10:25] truck bed.

[10:26] I'm not I'm not clear on how

[10:29] that is addressed here.

[10:30] >> yeah so we have a separate

[10:31] ordinance currently that any

[10:33] dog that rides in the open bed

[10:34] of pickup truck must be

[10:34] restrained.

[10:35] It's a separate ordinance

[10:37] that's already in effect that

[10:38] we are not changing or removing

[10:39] that in any shape or form.

[10:41] Okay because I do remember that

[10:41] order.

[10:42] >> thank you.

[10:42] Yep.

[10:43] So currently the nuisance

[10:45] animal ordinance states that

[10:45] any animal must create a noise

[10:46] in excess of ten minutes.

[10:49] >> the new proposals will

[10:49] change that ordinance to 2

[10:50] minutes.

[10:51] However, it's going to create a

[10:53] section that states that it can

[10:54] cause any annoyance discomfort,

[10:56] disturbance of the peace

[10:56] of sleeper or a reasonable

[10:57] person.

[10:57] >> why I believe that's

[11:00] important for our residents is

[11:00] just because if the dog is

[11:03] barking at 2:00 in the

[11:03] afternoon makes a big

[11:04] difference if the dogs barking

[11:05] at 2:00 in the morning.

[11:07] So if it's disturbing the sleep

[11:08] of a reasonable person, that

[11:09] would be something that we

[11:11] could now move forward with

[11:12] issuing citations for where

[11:12] previously it would have to

[11:14] meet that ten minute

[11:15] requirement.

[11:15] >> so hopefully that gives our

[11:16] residents who are having issues

[11:18] with dogs at night a bit of a

[11:22] peace of mind, a new law.

[11:22] >> this one again one of my

[11:23] favorite ones I'm very excited

[11:26] to bring to you guys the owner

[11:26] operator of her motor vehicle

[11:29] shall not place or confine an

[11:29] animal nor allow an animal to

[11:30] be placed or confined in any

[11:32] unattended motor vehicle

[11:33] without sufficient ventilation

[11:34] or under conditions which MAY

[11:37] endanger the health well-being

[11:37] of the animal due to heat, lack

[11:40] of water or other circumstances

[11:41] which MAY cause suffering

[11:42] disability or death.

[11:42] So currently there is no

[11:45] ordinance in the city that says

[11:46] that you can't leave your dog

[11:47] in an unattended motor vehicle.

[11:49] >> the only time that that

[11:50] would become a crime is when it

[11:50] becomes to a cruelty point.

[11:53] So when we can articulate that

[11:54] this dog is in distress or

[11:56] we're reaching the levels

[11:57] of animal cruelty and going

[11:57] forward with an arrest, the

[12:00] goal behind this ordinance is

[12:01] to be able to have some kind

[12:02] of preemptive way to speak to

[12:04] people to give some education

[12:05] and to give some enforcement

[12:08] prior to getting to that point

[12:08] .

[12:08] >> again, we don't want

[12:09] everybody to be leaving their

[12:12] dogs in the car in the heat.

[12:13] >> we also don't want everybody

[12:14] to go to jail for it.

[12:16] So this gives us an in-between

[12:17] point so we can have an

[12:17] educational comment

[12:18] conversation.

[12:20] That way it doesn't go from,

[12:21] you know, running into the

[12:23] store for five minutes to grab

[12:24] something to next time they run

[12:25] in the store for an hour and

[12:27] now we have a dog who's been in

[12:27] a car for an hour.

[12:28] >> so this gives us some form

[12:29] of accountability there.

[12:31] Did you say there was not

[12:31] previously an ordinance

[12:32] addressing this the city

[12:34] of deltona and unincorporated

[12:35] lucia county both have this

[12:37] exact ordinance but we do not.

[12:41] Don't forget what?

[12:42] >> so this is if I'm reading

[12:45] this correctly it's saying that

[12:45] an animal can be left in an

[12:49] unattended vehicle as long as

[12:50] there's sufficient ventilation.

[12:50] >> yeah.

[12:51] Correct.

[12:51] Yeah.

[12:52] So if you have like one of the

[12:53] ev's that you can leave the car

[12:54] on and it runs the air

[12:56] conditioning or it has like a

[12:57] dog mode or a kid mode or

[12:58] something like that that would

[13:00] be fine even if somebody left

[13:00] their vehicle running as long

[13:02] as there were sufficient

[13:03] ventilation for the dog that

[13:07] would be okay.

[13:10] Oh, MISS Mccurdy, if we're not

[13:10] when I read that that's

[13:16] sufficient is a very vague term

[13:17] .

[13:17] My understanding at this at

[13:20] this point I don't know if it's

[13:21] just in the county or not but

[13:22] one of the proposed ordinances

[13:24] previously for the city animals

[13:25] are not allowed to be left in a

[13:28] car any unattended at any time

[13:29] and even if all the windows are

[13:32] down or whatever because even

[13:35] this time of year constant

[13:36] reminder of how hot these

[13:39] vehicles can get in my did I

[13:40] misread that or was that.

[13:43] >> I have never seen that in

[13:44] our ordinance nor ever seen it

[13:46] in another ordinance because we

[13:47] have to really balance the fact

[13:48] that the florida statute

[13:51] dictates a lot of this.

[13:52] So we can't be almost too

[13:55] strict compared to what florida

[13:55] statute is permitting people to

[13:58] do which florida statute does

[13:59] permit people to leave their

[14:00] animals in the vehicle as long

[14:02] as they're not under duress.

[14:03] What we're trying to do is say

[14:06] you have to provide like you

[14:06] could leave an animal in a

[14:09] vehicle with the windows up for

[14:10] probably maybe two minutes

[14:11] before it becomes under duress

[14:14] and now we have to wait for

[14:15] that animal to get under duress

[14:16] to break the window to do so x,

[14:17] y and z.

[14:18] What he is trying to articulate

[14:19] is that hey, if you leave the

[14:21] animal in the car with the

[14:22] windows up and walk away, I can

[14:25] instantaneously stop you right

[14:26] there and say this is not

[14:26] sufficient.

[14:29] If we need to change the word

[14:30] sufficient because you're not

[14:30] comfortable with it we can

[14:33] potentially define it further

[14:34] in there and that's kind

[14:34] of what this conversation is

[14:35] about is defining maybe some

[14:37] terms that we need to clarify

[14:38] if you think sufficient needs

[14:41] to be defined or we need to

[14:41] find a different terminology to

[14:42] help with that.

[14:44] But to my knowledge right now

[14:45] we do not have anything that

[14:48] would go against florida

[14:48] statute.

[14:49] >> I do think that needs to

[14:52] have a little more teeth in it

[14:55] because I think now we've got a

[14:56] pretty educated general public

[14:59] out there and I can tell you

[15:00] and I don't know if you get

[15:00] that many calls or not but

[15:03] anybody that's at a shopping

[15:03] center or a public place where

[15:04] they see a dog or hear a dog

[15:07] barking in a vehicle and

[15:07] they're unattended, they're

[15:08] calling to report it.

[15:10] Yeah, absolutely.

[15:11] >> and that's correct.

[15:11] And we we get plenty of those

[15:12] calls.

[15:14] I think I've had three within

[15:15] the last month alone.

[15:15] >> yeah.

[15:16] And like I said, until we get

[15:18] to the point that I can

[15:18] articulate based on my training

[15:19] and experience that this dog is

[15:21] in distress, there's nothing I

[15:22] can do other than give them

[15:25] education.

[15:26] So now this gives us a step in

[15:27] between so there are some

[15:29] accountability and some

[15:29] ramifications of that.

[15:30] They'll think about this before

[15:31] the next time they do it again

[15:33] and it does result in a dog

[15:33] being in distress.

[15:36] >> well, I would never want to

[15:37] do anything that would dilute

[15:38] this with your intentions, you

[15:40] know, because they're

[15:40] excellent.

[15:41] That's what we want.

[15:42] I want to make sure you got

[15:46] something to fall back on the

[15:47] ground sufficient.

[15:47] Not crack the window or you

[15:48] know, one window was down

[15:49] completely or whatever.

[15:52] >> I think it's it needs to it

[15:53] needs to say a little more

[15:55] understood.

[15:56] I think that would help you out

[15:56] immensely because I think I

[15:59] know what's going to happen.

[16:03] It's potential that it says I

[16:03] don't would be placed or

[16:04] confined in an unintended motor

[16:07] vehicle without ventilation and

[16:08] just take sufficient out of it

[16:10] and that would mean the windows

[16:11] have to be cracked at some

[16:14] point.

[16:15] The question becomes by saying

[16:18] without ventilation is this

[16:19] enough ventilation?

[16:20] i still would say that's not

[16:22] ventilation and maybe if we

[16:23] define ventilation as air being

[16:26] able to move freely throughout

[16:27] the vehicle that a set

[16:30] of defined sufficient defined

[16:31] ventilation as you know freely

[16:34] moving air that can transmit

[16:35] back and forth throughout the

[16:38] vehicle allowing for fresh air

[16:39] to enter the vehicle at any

[16:39] given point in time because

[16:43] this is not going to allow for

[16:43] air but like a window

[16:44] completely down or halfway down

[16:46] on both sides is going to allow

[16:47] free air movement throughout

[16:47] the vehicle.

[16:49] >> but we'll look at this

[16:50] section to try to strengthen

[16:50] that definition so we can

[16:54] articulate to the public

[16:55] exactly what we're trying to

[16:56] get to and I don't know if it's

[16:56] possible.

[16:57] >> one other thing to consider

[16:58] in this is this happens when

[17:01] people are having you're in

[17:02] animals transported on a

[17:05] commercial aircraft.

[17:05] There are certain levels

[17:09] of ambient temperature on which

[17:10] and you cannot send your

[17:12] animals on the airplane even

[17:13] though climate controlled

[17:14] conditions occur in the

[17:16] aircraft and cargo compartment

[17:17] when they are taken out and

[17:20] left on a runway or taken a

[17:21] place for baggage and handling

[17:22] where the temperature MAY not

[17:24] be controlled, there's been

[17:25] some loss of life there.

[17:29] So I don't know where and where

[17:32] temperature could be put in

[17:33] here if there could be some

[17:33] restrictions on that.

[17:36] But let me just face it when we

[17:37] do have temperatures in the 40s

[17:39] and 50s outside, it's much

[17:40] different than than what we're

[17:43] having right now.

[17:44] And again, I just like I know

[17:47] that I know what comes up.

[17:47] I know these things happen and

[17:50] I'm just trying to give just

[17:51] some input so you can tweak

[17:55] this a little bit so we can be

[17:55] covered.

[17:55] >> yeah, yeah.

[17:58] I think the biggest problem we

[17:58] have with ordinances in general

[18:02] and I'm running into this is

[18:03] many of us specifically law

[18:04] enforcement and I think officer

[18:06] wilkin probably attest to this

[18:09] is putting parameters like a

[18:10] temperature in there isn't bad

[18:13] except for he is not able to

[18:14] enforce that so he's not really

[18:14] going to know the inside of the

[18:16] temperature of that vehicle

[18:17] until he gets inside that

[18:18] vehicle which he has to have a

[18:21] reason to get inside that

[18:22] vehicle which is typically the

[18:22] dog is in distress and you can

[18:26] tell so you know, we run into

[18:27] this a lot where it's like oh,

[18:30] we'd love to, you know, prevent

[18:31] bicycle ebikes on roads who are

[18:33] going 20mph.

[18:33] Okay.

[18:34] Well that's really hard to

[18:34] enforce because our radar

[18:37] doesn't pick it up correctly

[18:38] and stuff like that.

[18:39] So we try to look at writing

[18:40] this the best way so that

[18:41] enforcement can happen through

[18:44] his eyes and be arguable to the

[18:48] magistrates or the judges in

[18:48] charge.

[18:49] >> but I agree with you we can

[18:52] define this better so it's a

[18:53] lot better and we can put some

[18:53] other kind of parameters to

[18:56] indicate you know maybe we want

[18:57] windows to be at least three

[18:59] fourths of the way down and on

[19:00] all four of a normal standard

[19:03] vehicle or something like that

[19:03] .

[19:04] But you know I appreciate you

[19:05] for pointed out because you

[19:07] know it's something that, you

[19:08] know overlooks us and then

[19:09] that's why we bring it to you

[19:09] guys so that we can kind

[19:12] of flesh it out some more.

[19:13] >> okay.

[19:13] Perfect procedure.

[19:15] That's exactly what we're here

[19:16] for.

[19:16] I guess that's what this is

[19:17] for.

[19:17] That's the good stuff.

[19:19] Any further questions that we

[19:20] can move on?

[19:20] >> all right.

[19:23] Read this is another one I'm

[19:23] very excited to bring you guys.

[19:24] >> this is their pre

[19:26] prohibition of the retail sale

[19:27] of dogs and cats.

[19:30] So no commercial establishment

[19:31] or flea market for the purposes

[19:32] of resale or retail can display

[19:34] sell deliver, offer for sale,

[19:35] barter auction or otherwise

[19:37] transfer dispose of dogs and

[19:38] cats.

[19:38] This section is highlighted

[19:42] here because obviously a lot a

[19:43] lot of us know the florida

[19:44] point of rescue worked very

[19:47] closely in hand with the pet

[19:47] supermarket up there on

[19:48] saturdays they go up and do

[19:50] adoption events this does not

[19:50] include that.

[19:51] So any humane society or

[19:54] nonprofit organization can go

[19:54] to a retail establishment and

[19:58] offer some form of adoption

[19:58] program things like that.

[19:59] >> the goal is to stop people

[20:02] from retail sailing dogs or

[20:03] cats so companies like petland

[20:06] who are famous in orlando that

[20:06] were retailing retail selling

[20:07] dogs or cats and then same

[20:10] thing with flea markets the

[20:11] daytona flea market had a big

[20:11] issue with this before we

[20:12] passed an ordinance and boucher

[20:14] county that disbanded so we be

[20:15] no retail sale of dogs and cats

[20:18] so again if a humane society or

[20:19] nonprofit wanted to come out

[20:22] and wanted to do an event with

[20:22] tractor supply or pet

[20:23] supermarket or any of our other

[20:25] local businesses by all means

[20:26] obviously that's what we want,

[20:26] right?

[20:28] >> we want to increase adoption

[20:32] rates and not retail rates and

[20:33] those are all the major changes

[20:34] I have for you guys.

[20:35] >> and then again obviously

[20:36] there's a lot of verbiage, a

[20:37] lot of words inside of the main

[20:39] ordinances.

[20:40] >> if you guys have any further

[20:41] questions with them please let

[20:44] me know again the goal like the

[20:45] doctor said that the goal is to

[20:45] strengthen animal welfare and

[20:47] to make it as good as possible

[20:48] to make new smyrna beach the

[20:50] safest place to have a pet.

[20:51] >> and the goal is for you guys

[20:52] to be able to review them and

[20:53] give me feedback of things that

[20:54] you'd like to see changed or

[20:55] added or different.

[20:58] Any questions I can answer for

[20:58] the board?

[20:58] >> yes.

[20:59] I'd like to go back to the

[21:02] civil penalty we first spoke

[21:04] about with a third offense

[21:05] previously requiring a

[21:08] mandatory court appearance,

[21:08] correct.

[21:09] >> well, what was the reason

[21:13] for eliminating the court

[21:14] appearance and I'm sure I know

[21:14] there's a good reason but yeah,

[21:17] the resources of the court so

[21:18] you know, having somebody go

[21:21] out and appearing in front of a

[21:21] court for them to be issued the

[21:22] same fine that is the maximum

[21:25] we can issue them takes a toll

[21:25] on the court.

[21:26] You know they they have traffic

[21:28] court, they have citations

[21:29] they're going through when we

[21:29] can issue them the maximum

[21:30] amount that's the same thing

[21:32] that the court would be able to

[21:32] do.

[21:33] So rather than putting those

[21:35] stresses and strains on the

[21:36] court system, we'll go ahead

[21:37] and address that here in house.

[21:39] >> so basically when they went

[21:40] to court their option was to

[21:42] pay the fine and nothing else

[21:43] happened.

[21:44] >> so basically they can still

[21:46] go to court and appeal it but

[21:47] if they'd rather just pay the

[21:50] fine right now there's no

[21:51] reason to send it to the court,

[21:51] pay the court processing fees

[21:52] and do all that because they're

[21:54] not getting anything more than

[21:55] the mandatory fine.

[21:58] >> and my reason for

[21:59] questioning that and especially

[21:59] with the new animal cruelty

[22:02] laws statewide that have been

[22:05] in place I didn't know if this

[22:06] I mean a third offense to me is

[22:09] pretty serious and I didn't

[22:10] know where that would fall.

[22:13] And in the jurisdiction of the

[22:17] state for someone that has a

[22:18] third offense for the same

[22:22] thing and they're ability or

[22:22] their their say their ability

[22:26] necessary I would say the

[22:26] privilege of of owning animals

[22:30] comes into question so by the

[22:31] courts yeah and this is to

[22:33] address city ordinances this is

[22:34] to address things such as dog

[22:37] being off leash spay and neuter

[22:38] tethering ordinance violations,

[22:39] things like that.

[22:41] This wouldn't address any

[22:42] of those animal cruelty.

[22:43] So animal cruelty we handle

[22:46] entirely differently anything

[22:47] that comes with the jail

[22:47] offense.

[22:48] So any time we petition the

[22:49] court for custody michelle and

[22:50] I always request that the court

[22:50] enjoin the owner from ever

[22:53] having contact or owning

[22:54] animals.

[22:54] >> this is more to address your

[22:57] local city ordinance

[22:57] violations.

[22:58] >> okay.

[22:59] And this wouldn't apply to your

[23:01] dangerous dog ordinance either

[23:01] .

[23:01] So that would be completely

[23:05] separate that would have a

[23:06] different I think it even

[23:08] outlines the different civil

[23:09] penalty and we can write that

[23:09] in there.

[23:12] But like he said, this is for

[23:13] your I don't wanna call them

[23:14] minor offenses but your more

[23:16] minor offenses in a city

[23:17] ordinance element then you're a

[23:20] serious florida statute things

[23:21] that will call into question

[23:24] the care of the dog and I think

[23:25] if we get to the point let's

[23:28] say for example we do have an

[23:29] animal that is left in a

[23:32] vehicle and it doesn't have

[23:35] sufficient ventilation but the

[23:36] is not at distress that

[23:39] dillon's going to articulate

[23:40] that and I think on a second

[23:40] offense is probably going to

[23:42] move to have the court remove

[23:43] the animal from the care

[23:44] custody and we'll go through a

[23:47] civil process for removing the

[23:47] animal based on a neglect but

[23:50] we'll be able to articulate

[23:51] that hey, we've had this

[23:51] previous case now we have

[23:54] another case.

[23:55] It seems like this person is

[23:55] not taking adequate care and

[23:57] then the court through the

[23:58] civil process will be able to

[23:59] determine whether they believe

[24:00] that they cannot handle the pet

[24:04] at that point in time.

[24:08] And there were some other parts

[24:08] of the ordinance that proposed

[24:12] the same of dealing with the

[24:13] meetings of this board.

[24:16] Yes.

[24:16] And said the board shall meet

[24:21] when necessary versus at least

[24:21] quarterly.

[24:24] Yes.

[24:28] Who decides when it's

[24:29] necessary?

[24:30] >> the city staff would decide

[24:32] so obviously any dangerous dog

[24:32] would come.

[24:35] We would meet at that point in

[24:36] time and then that makes

[24:36] perfect sense.

[24:37] >> yeah.

[24:39] Any ordinance change like we're

[24:40] doing now?

[24:40] My fear is sometimes with some

[24:43] of our other boards is that

[24:44] we're meeting just to meet and

[24:47] we have nothing to talk about

[24:48] and I would hate to bring

[24:49] everybody in here and say okay

[24:51] great we're here.

[24:52] >> we really have nothing to

[24:53] tell you and then go from

[24:53] there.

[24:55] You're more than welcome to

[24:56] communicate with city staff and

[24:59] MISS Evans as to like hey, I'd

[25:00] love to have a meeting because

[25:01] I'd like to discuss the

[25:03] following things and then the

[25:04] staff can look at it and go yup

[25:07] let's have a meeting to discuss

[25:07] these concerns.

[25:08] >> so yeah that's fine with me.

[25:08] Okay.

[25:10] Yeah that's good.

[25:14] >> on the on page four under

[25:16] the appeals.

[25:20] Okay.

[25:24] I don't I don't think we've

[25:24] ever had this come up before.

[25:28] The board shall hear and

[25:29] determine appeals by any person

[25:32] aggrieved by their dog being

[25:35] deemed dangerous that that's

[25:39] not an appeal of the decision

[25:40] of this board.

[25:40] >> certainly that's that's an

[25:44] appeal of the of the animal

[25:48] control officers designation.

[25:48] >> right.

[25:48] Okay.

[25:51] He gets to determine that

[25:52] they're dangerous.

[25:52] That person can either accept

[25:56] his determining or appeal it to

[25:56] this board.

[25:57] Then you all make your

[25:59] determination if they would

[25:59] like to appeal your

[26:00] determination it goes to the

[26:06] circuit court.

[26:10] So all these other things that

[26:10] have been stricken in this

[26:17] proposed ordinance then you

[26:17] guys have just gone through

[26:21] this is what he what he talked

[26:22] about here today.

[26:23] There's a lot of other stuff in

[26:24] here that's being changed for

[26:25] correct.

[26:26] >> a lot of it is

[26:26] reorganization.

[26:29] I felt that this chapter was

[26:29] very disorganized.

[26:33] We had a lot of reserved area

[26:33] and the numbers didn't flow

[26:34] appropriately and I thought

[26:37] things were put in weird spots.

[26:38] >> so a lot of it remains but

[26:41] is being reorganized in

[26:42] different areas and then some

[26:45] of it has just been cleaned up

[26:45] in general with some additives

[26:49] of what officer wolfe has

[26:49] indicated.

[26:50] >> I will say that there is

[26:53] another section that I am

[26:56] considering adding which deals

[26:59] with our roosters on flagler

[27:00] avenue and just my next point.

[27:03] >> okay.

[27:04] Which would allow us to

[27:07] something I've kicked around is

[27:08] to allow us to address

[27:08] aggressive roosters, define

[27:11] what aggressive means, define

[27:12] that we have two verified

[27:15] reports of roosters attacking

[27:19] people or damaging property and

[27:22] based on that the city of new

[27:23] smyrna beach can execute how we

[27:26] deem fit to remove said

[27:26] aggressive roosters.

[27:27] >> right now we don't have that

[27:28] in the ordinance so that's

[27:30] something I forgot to put in

[27:31] there.

[27:31] It came back up.

[27:32] I think I'm going to add it

[27:34] I'll probably look at key west

[27:35] to see exactly how they're

[27:36] bridges because I think they

[27:38] have something similar but we

[27:38] do want to address our

[27:41] aggressive rooster issue the

[27:46] urban chicken program know we

[27:48] have an urban chicken program

[27:49] his his do we have that in

[27:50] place now?

[27:50] Anything like it?

[27:53] I would we have it in place I

[27:54] just don't know that we have a

[27:56] lot of people who do it.

[27:57] >> that same ordinance is in

[27:57] place.

[27:58] I don't believe we made any

[28:00] changes to that ordinance other

[28:01] than the number two.

[28:01] Again, that was just to

[28:04] rearrange order and flow.

[28:05] >> yes, I rearranged it into it

[28:07] like the exotic animal models

[28:08] and eggs and urban chickens but

[28:09] the requirements and permit

[28:11] remain the same.

[28:11] Yeah.

[28:15] Do you can you get me a copy

[28:16] of the ordinance that you're

[28:16] referring to?

[28:19] >> sure, sure.

[28:20] Because I don't I didn't I've

[28:23] got what I thought was the

[28:24] current one I had the one that

[28:24] megan wilks put together.

[28:26] We previously discussed it

[28:30] never took effect in what I

[28:31] have there is nothing about the

[28:34] chickens at that time so I

[28:34] didn't realize that that had

[28:35] ever been passed.

[28:39] >> yes it ha yes it's it's in

[28:40] the ordinance now.

[28:42] >> well no it I can tell you

[28:43] this it didn't come before this

[28:46] board okay I don't know thank

[28:46] GOD this is before me and I

[28:49] would want to get too involved

[28:56] in this thing but

[28:56] if you had a

[28:59] lot of complaints about people

[29:00] having chickens in the

[29:03] neighborhoods a minimal amount

[29:04] I'd say we receive a couple

[29:07] of year mostly regarding people

[29:08] having roosters because

[29:10] obviously they're waking up

[29:11] super early in the morning and

[29:11] creating a disturbance to the

[29:14] neighborhood which the current

[29:15] ordinance does not allow you to

[29:18] have a pet rooster.

[29:19] So we will go through and we

[29:19] address those.

[29:20] It's just one of those things

[29:22] that we address on a case by

[29:23] case basis and I would not say

[29:24] it's a problem we get a lot

[29:26] of yeah, I wouldn't be anxious

[29:27] to go in and if you have

[29:30] chickens that you're getting

[29:30] eggs and stuff they have to be

[29:33] have a coop and yeah there are

[29:34] certain requirements as far as

[29:35] the sheltering, the housing,

[29:38] the sanitation the ordinance is

[29:38] very specific into what they

[29:39] have to have.

[29:41] Yeah but you're allowed to have

[29:42] up to five hens as long as

[29:43] you've obtained the permit from

[29:45] the city.

[29:45] Our complaints about people

[29:49] having chickens and their

[29:49] neighborhood or is this a

[29:50] complaint generated

[29:53] investigation on your part or

[29:54] is it code enforcement who it

[29:57] would go through?

[29:58] So sometimes they go through

[29:58] code enforcement.

[29:59] Sometimes they call into the

[30:01] non-emergency dispatch center

[30:02] or sometimes it MAY be

[30:03] something they call and to the

[30:05] city directly but it's yeah,

[30:05] it's made so it's a complaint

[30:08] that I'm responding to if that

[30:09] makes sense.

[30:09] >> well, the one thing I did

[30:12] want to talk about was the

[30:13] roosters and the chickens in

[30:16] general on flagler is nobody

[30:20] really asked the question where

[30:20] did they come from?

[30:21] >> oh yeah and I think yeah

[30:24] when we we've asked the

[30:24] question you know the question

[30:25] is where did they come from

[30:27] because they have came from

[30:28] somewhere much like ybor city

[30:31] and tampa and key west you know

[30:32] they did originate from

[30:32] somewhere and it's a it's a

[30:35] polarized divide amongst the

[30:36] city of what the perspective is

[30:39] with the roosters amongst our

[30:39] residents because when you go

[30:43] out to tractor supply and you

[30:43] get those cute little chickens

[30:47] to bring home, you're often

[30:47] surprised that you don't have

[30:48] hens.

[30:50] yeah, you've got a rooster in

[30:50] there.

[30:51] So flagler has gotten to be a

[30:55] dumping ground for unwanted

[30:58] roosters and yeah I, I think we

[31:01] had put out a post maybe two

[31:02] years ago at some point that

[31:04] banning an animal is considered

[31:05] a crime.

[31:06] The biggest thing is catching

[31:10] them and so we've been unable

[31:11] to really catch anyone to be in

[31:12] in an animal but yes they are

[31:13] definitely coming from

[31:16] somewhere.

[31:17] >> yeah that's where they're

[31:17] coming from.

[31:17] Yeah.

[31:18] Currently there is a city

[31:20] ordinance that you can't

[31:21] abandon an animal anywhere

[31:21] within the limits of the city

[31:24] which would carry a $50 fine.

[31:24] Again, one of the reasons that

[31:28] we're trying to up that there's

[31:28] a state law that also addresses

[31:29] that which makes it a

[31:30] misdemeanor to abandon an

[31:32] animal in any public place or

[31:32] street.

[31:33] But again the resource becomes

[31:35] of how do we prove it?

[31:36] I know the police department

[31:37] has made efforts into trying to

[31:39] figure out where the roosters

[31:40] have came from but as just came

[31:42] to no avail crime and I thought

[31:43] I remember hearing when I moved

[31:46] here that somebody thought it

[31:47] would be cool because to be

[31:51] like he was and had dumped some

[31:51] off but like going again they

[31:52] had to start it from somewhere

[31:54] so that that could have been

[31:54] the philosophy they just keep

[31:55] multiplying.

[32:01] >> yeah chickens do the sachs

[32:05] month age on animals beings

[32:06] spayed or neutered and we've

[32:09] talked about this I think at

[32:10] least once before there has

[32:13] been a lot of research and a

[32:14] lot of veterinarians are

[32:17] changing their policy on the

[32:20] age because especially in large

[32:21] breed male dogs there were some

[32:28] much higher incidence

[32:28] of osteosarcoma bone cancer

[32:32] right long bone cancer in

[32:33] labradors, golden retrievers a

[32:36] lot of the popular large breed

[32:37] dogs and retrospective studies

[32:37] just found out that there was

[32:41] definitely a connection between

[32:41] that and now and their

[32:44] recommendation is between 12

[32:45] and 24 months.

[32:49] Now I don't know that needs to

[32:50] be put in the ordinance this is

[32:52] MAY be for your yeah so

[32:53] something that we did after we

[32:53] had spoken about that last time

[32:56] so I obviously you know took

[32:57] your words and move forward

[32:57] with that there is a medical

[32:59] exemption in there so if any

[33:00] veterinarian makes any

[33:01] statement saying that for any

[33:03] medical purpose this dog cannot

[33:03] or shall not be spayed or

[33:06] neutered until this age that

[33:07] medical exemption would apply.

[33:08] So if you yourself as a

[33:08] veterinarian said, you know,

[33:11] this is a male great dane, I

[33:11] don't believe he should be

[33:14] neutered until two years and

[33:14] you wrote us a letter you'd be

[33:15] exempt and we would not be

[33:16] enforcing any spay neuter upon

[33:22] that person

[33:23] .

[33:28] That's that's about all I got.

[33:28] Any other questions?

[33:31] Input.

[33:32] I don't have my notes at home.

[33:37] No, no, it was a dog.

[33:38] >> eat up.

[33:40] Just get a play with the arrow

[33:40] dog.

[33:41] they were all how little typos

[33:43] do you want do you want to hear

[33:43] about those later?

[33:44] Like can I type them up and

[33:45] send them to you?

[33:47] Yeah you can that's for sure.

[33:47] >> yeah well I mean this will

[33:48] go through just so that you

[33:51] know we'll probably go back

[33:51] through it.

[33:54] We've noticed some mistakes

[33:54] ourselves.

[33:55] >> it's honestly writing an

[33:58] ordinances a very complicated

[33:59] it's not complicated it's

[34:02] tedious where you delete and

[34:03] underline and cross and when

[34:04] you're doing that it doesn't

[34:04] always catch everything which

[34:07] leads to the typos and the

[34:07] spacing issue and stuff like

[34:08] that.

[34:10] >> but from here we'll go back

[34:11] over it, try to get it cleaned

[34:14] up with some of the notes that

[34:15] you've given us.

[34:15] We'll talk to the chief

[34:16] of police who will talk to the

[34:19] city manager and then they will

[34:19] decide when to bring it forward

[34:22] to commission and maybe if they

[34:23] would like to have a public

[34:25] workshop with other citizens

[34:26] maybe coming in, being

[34:26] involved, that's always a

[34:29] possibility.

[34:30] I suspect this will take a 6 to

[34:33] 8 months time frame to get

[34:33] fully through commission.

[34:36] >> it is two readings.

[34:37] We've got a few things that are

[34:40] pressing on the commission

[34:40] right now.

[34:41] We also have holidays coming up

[34:44] and like I said this is a

[34:48] rewrite of a whole chapter so

[34:48] this is chapter 18 being

[34:49] completely kind of gutted and

[34:52] rewritten and reformatted.

[34:53] So that takes a little bit

[34:53] longer.

[34:56] That's why I always love to

[34:57] give 6 to 8 months and if I get

[34:59] it done in four I have

[35:00] delivered so well I think I can

[35:03] I certainly feel better.

[35:04] >> excuse me MAY please ask you

[35:07] to speak into your microphone.

[35:07] You're not coming a three okay.

[35:10] I think if I could have that

[35:14] copy of that old ordinance I

[35:15] think I could do a much more

[35:17] complete job.

[35:18] You know, from a veterinarian

[35:21] standpoint of evaluating these

[35:22] these additions and or changes

[35:26] so I think we need it unless I

[35:29] come I'll go through it all and

[35:30] I don't come up with anything

[35:30] new.

[35:32] I would think we need to at

[35:33] least have one more meeting.

[35:34] >> that's fine.

[35:36] That's fine.

[35:37] So what I'll do is I'll have

[35:41] either MISS Evans send it to

[35:44] your MR. Taylor hardy and send

[35:44] it to you a copy of chapter 18

[35:48] as written and then that's the

[35:48] current that's the current or

[35:51] okay downloaded from muni

[35:52] code directly sent to you and

[35:55] then we'll send you the copy

[35:56] that we have again which is the

[36:00] change one which you will see

[36:00] the strike thrus and the cross

[36:02] out.

[36:03] I would disregard all the other

[36:06] copies you have at this point

[36:07] and just look at those two.

[36:09] So the one from chapter 18 is

[36:10] currently in the books and

[36:12] passed and codified the one and

[36:13] that's what we work off

[36:16] of what's been codified and

[36:17] then we'll go from there and we

[36:18] can plan to have another

[36:21] meeting maybe in DECEMBER if we

[36:25] can convene it sooner will

[36:25] email you guys and see if we

[36:26] can get you here sooner so that

[36:28] we can get the ball rolling but

[36:29] we can shoot for DECEMBER to

[36:30] bring it back.

[36:30] >> okay, good.

[36:32] Thank you.

[36:33] >> and I want to thank you for

[36:36] going I think above and beyond

[36:37] I know I do this at the state

[36:39] level.

[36:40] I'm CHAIRMAN Of the state board

[36:41] of veterinary medicine and they

[36:44] have just recently done a lot

[36:47] of changes and in our chapter

[36:47] 474 I know how difficult it is

[36:51] to write rules and regulations.

[36:51] >> yeah.

[36:53] I mean prior to the to the

[36:54] sachs months that it will now

[36:55] take to move forward from this

[36:56] I've been working on this for

[36:58] probably 7 or 8 months alone

[36:59] and that includes reaching out

[37:02] to some of the the pinnacle

[37:02] animal welfare agencies in

[37:03] florida.

[37:03] >> you know brevard county

[37:06] animal services, lee county

[37:06] animal services looking at

[37:07] agencies like that and seeing

[37:10] the strides and the directions

[37:11] that they're taking and then

[37:11] kind of building what fits for

[37:14] our city based off of that.

[37:14] >> so I very much appreciate

[37:17] that they do so much and I know

[37:18] it's a little bit sometimes a

[37:21] little bit frustrating when you

[37:22] get things oh I got this just

[37:22] right.

[37:23] >> this is exactly what I

[37:25] wanted to say and somebody

[37:25] comes up with a little

[37:26] something that kind of throws

[37:29] it off the rail a little bit.

[37:30] I know how how that can be a

[37:32] little discouraging and I never

[37:33] want to be that person but I

[37:33] certainly think I do have

[37:36] something to contribute on some

[37:37] of these and I can see from my

[37:40] experience the wording

[37:40] of something is going to cause

[37:41] trouble down the road.

[37:44] I certainly bring it up just

[37:44] for that reason.

[37:45] Just just want to try and get

[37:48] it right first time.

[37:48] >> yeah totally.

[37:49] Not sure that as much as we can

[37:52] the mission of the mission

[37:53] of my mission and your guys is

[37:53] mission is the same thing,

[37:54] right?

[37:55] >> we want that just for the

[37:56] animals inside the city of new

[37:56] smyrna beach.

[37:59] So your feedback anything that

[38:00] you guys give me I don't take

[38:00] it personally.

[38:01] >> you know, like you said, it

[38:02] is something I've worked on

[38:03] passionately and dedicatedly

[38:04] for the last several months.

[38:07] >> but whatever we can do as a

[38:08] group to move forward to make

[38:09] sure we have the best of the

[38:11] best is what I want.

[38:11] Good deal.

[38:12] All right.

[38:15] So very good.

[38:15] I think we're done.

[38:18] Any other staff reports?

[38:19] >> nothing from the city

[38:20] attorney's office.

[38:22] Okay.

[38:23] >> any board members?

[38:23] Any comments?

[38:23] Questions?

[38:25] No.

[38:26] No.

[38:26] Okay.

[38:29] Oh, this is SEPTEMBER.

[38:30] >> okay.

[38:33] So we could meet once in

[38:37] DECEMBER if not DECEMBER.

[38:38] >> JANUARY perhaps?

[38:38] Absolutely.

[38:38] Okay.

[38:40] Can be a problem at all.

[38:44] okay.

[38:45] We have no public so we have no

[38:48] public comments.

[38:48] Okay.

[38:52] The move to adjourn you have a

[38:53] motion to adjourn.

[38:54] >> do we have a second?

[38:55] >> second.

[38:55] All those in favor

[38:56] of adjournment say hi.

[38:58] Hi.

[38:59] >> and you oppose motion

[38:59] carries.

[39:00] We're adjourned.

[39:00] Thank you guys.

[39:01] Thank you.

Animal Control Board

Agenda

Transcript