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Staff Report PREPARED BY: Lynne Lampros Deputy Town Attorney Reviewed by: Town Manager, Assistant Town Manager, Finance Director, Community Development Director 110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832 www.losgatosca.gov TOWN OF LOS GATOS COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT MEETING DATE: 09/04/2018 ITEM NO: 8 DATE: August 24, 2018 TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL FROM: LYNNE LAMPROS, DEPUTY TOWN ATTORNEY SUBJECT: INTRODUCTION OF AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF LOS GATOS, CALIFORNIA AMENDING CHAPTER 4.10 OF THE LOS GATOS TOWN CODE ENTITLED ANIMALS AND FOWL RECOMMENDATION: Accept public comment and then move for the introduction and first reading of an Ordinance, by title only, amending Chapter 4 of the Los Gatos Town Code Entitled Animals and Fowl. BACKGROUND: The Town Attorney’s Office has been evaluating and conducting a comprehensive review of the Town’s Municipal Code provisions. Chapter 4 of the Los Gatos Town Code entitled Animals and Fowls has not been revised in many years and revisions are necessary to clarify definitions and the permitting requirements, allocate responsibilities for feeding and harboring animals, and streamline the process for enforcement, hearings and appeals. This Ordinance was first brought to Council on June 19, 2018 for introduction and first reading. After the hearing, the Town received a request to continue the second reading and adoption of the ordinance from Jon Cicirelli, Director Animal Care and Services for the City of Jose. Although San Jose Animal Care and Services had been provided with the draft ordinance on May 1, 2018, Mr. Cicirelli requested additional time to review and comment on the proposed amendments to the ordinance. Since the City of San Jose provides anim al control services to the Town, the Town welcomed the input of its contractor. PAGE 2 OF 5 SUBJECT: INTRODUCE AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER FOUR TO THE LOS GATOS TOWN CODE ENTITLED ANIMALS AND FOWL August 24, 2018 BACKGROUND (Cont’d): Further, many members of the public had comments on the proposed changes after the June 19, 2018 meeting. The Town Attorney’s Office met or spoke with members of the public and considered the comments in the assessment of how to proceed with the introduced Ordinance . Accordingly, the Town Attorney’s Office determined it was appropriate to continue the matter, revise the ordinance further, and have the Ordinance heard for introduction and first reading in its revised form on September 4, 2018. The Town Attorney’s Office made many changes to the ordinance as a result of public comment and appreciated the opportunity to improve the ordinance and be responsive to the Town’s residents and contractor. Attachment 1 is the draft revised Ordinance for Council approval and Attachment 2 is the red-line version of the proposed changes to the Town’s current Ordinance. DISCUSSION: The Town Attorney’s Office has received frequent inquiries and complaints regarding issues with animals that are not addressed in our current Code. Further there were sections of the current Code that were out of date with state law or the Town’s current contracts, such as feeding of wild animals, powers of animal control officers, definition of service animals, references to outdated impound timeframes, references to Santa Clara County regulations, and reference to contractors no longer used by the Town. As a result, the Town Attorney’s Office has made some recommended amendments to address these issues in Chapter 4 of the Los Gatos Town Code entitled Animals and Fowl. The ordinance contained in Attachment 1 modifies the Town’s process relating to dangerous dog law, specifically for enforcement, hearings and appeals, as well as criteria for and conditions of keeping dogs designated potentially dangerous, dangerous, or vicious. The June 19, 2018 ordinance had proposed changes to the care and keeping requirements for chickens, other livestock, and bees. These proposed changes engendered complaints by a few residents. Given the fact that the Town does not receive as many complaints involving chicken, livestock, or bees as it does dogs and cats, and the fact that one of the complaining residents was on vacation until September 1, 2018 and unable to meet before this report’s deadline, the Town Attorney’s Office decided to remove any substantive changes to the Ordinance regarding chickens and livestock, and leave the section pertaining to bees exactly the same as it had been. The most significant changes to the proposed Ordinance from the June 19, 2018 Council meeting amends Chapter 4 to the Town Code relating to the keeping and feeding of wild and PAGE 3 OF 5 SUBJECT: INTRODUCE AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER FOUR TO THE LOS GATOS TOWN CODE ENTITLED ANIMALS AND FOWL August 24, 2018 DISCUSSION (Cont’d): feral animals, with specific limitations and responsibilities to promote a safe and healthy environment for residents, visitors, and animals. The proposed amendments restrict the keeping and harboring of “non-household animals” within Town limits. The amendments also address responsibilities to maintain conditions that will not present a public or private nuisance. The amendments further clarify legitimate animal rescue and feral cat ‘Trap-Neuter- Return’ (TNR) organizations and their practices. There were many comments received from the public on both sides of the issue involving the feeding of feral and wild animals in the Town. Some individuals favor the completely unrestricted feeding of feral cat colonies with no requirement of affiliation with a recognized animal rescue or TNR organization and no limitations on where and how such feeding can take place or for how long. The Town received some complaints specifically against feral cats, however the majority of the comments from Town residents who objected to the feeding of animals did so because of the nuisance conditions that result from the feeding as practiced, namely the severe influx of skunk, raccoon, and cockroaches that are drawn to the food put out. Similar to the verbal testimony received in June, these residents are frustrated by the presence of wild animals and vermin that are drawn to the cat food scattered on public property or cans of cat food left under cars, on the street, or in carports. As a result, the amended Ordinance attempts to reconcile legitimate animal rescue and TNR work, which does involve putting out food to trap outdoor, feral animals with the need to protect the Town’s residents from the health and safety concerns that result from the unregulated feeding of feral animals. Feeding wild animals on public or private property is against state law, and the amended Ordinance clarifies that it is against the Municipal Code as well, which gives Town staff the tools to prohibit that conduct. The revised Ordinance allows the feeding of feral animals in certain situations to bridge the divide among Town residents on this topic. The revised definitions distinguish feral from wild animals. The feeding of feral animals can occur in three circumstances: (1) on the private property of the feeder; (2) private property belonging to someone other than the feeder if the owner and all tenants/residents on that property consent in writing; or (3) by permit issued by the Town Manager for the purpose of animal rescue or TNR as defined and regulated by the proposed Ordinance. The permit issued by the Town Manager requires the evaluation of each request on its own merits for adherence to criteria for location, length of time, best practices for feeding and trapping to minimize nuisance consequences, and valid affiliation with a recognized PAGE 4 OF 5 SUBJECT: INTRODUCE AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER FOUR TO THE LOS GATOS TOWN CODE ENTITLED ANIMALS AND FOWL August 24, 2018 DISCUSSION (Cont’d): organization with a history of active animal rescue or TNR work. This approach would allow feeding incidental to rescue and TNR work for the purpose of trapping, acknowledging that such practice requires time to develop a pattern that the feral cats can rely on to enable trapping, but also protects residents against feeding that is not in conjunction with valid rescue and TNR practice and may result in consequences that threaten residents’ health and safety. The revised Ordinance suggests best practices for legitimate feeding conduct to clarify expectations and gain voluntary compliance as well as assist Town staff in enforcement. Finally, the revised Ordinance recognizes that the liability for a feeder’s conduct rests both with the feeder and the owner of the property if different from the feeder. This assists a property owner by empowering him or her to take action against tenants who repeatedly violate the law and expose the owner to liability. CONCLUSION AND NEXT STEPS: For the reasons stated in this report, staff recommends that the Town Council should introduce the revised Ordinance by title only. If the revised Ordinance is introduced and adopted, Town staff will continue to work with animal owners and individuals interacting with animals to gain voluntary compliance. If voluntary compliance cannot be achieved, violations of this ordinance can be corrected throug h the administrative procedures adopted by the Town Council in 2004 or pursued through a variety of other methods, including nuisance abatement and enforcement through the misdemeanor or infraction process. COORDINATION: As discussed above, Town staff, including Community Development, Police, and the Town’s outside contractor for Animal Control were provided with the current Ordinance to review and provide input to ensure the individual provisions match their experiences and needs in the field. Further, the Town Attorney’s Office received significant comments from members of the public and met with interested residents to solicit their ideas (see Attachment 3). FISCAL IMPACT: There is no direct fiscal impact by this action. The fiscal impact of this Ordinance may result in additional revenue from administrative penalties and fines as well as saving some staff time in achieving compliance. PAGE 5 OF 5 SUBJECT: INTRODUCE AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER FOUR TO THE LOS GATOS TOWN CODE ENTITLED ANIMALS AND FOWL August 24, 2018 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: The revised Ordinance is not a project defined under CEQA and no further action is required. Attachments: 1. Draft Revised Ordinance 2. Red-line Version of Proposed Ordinance. 3. Public Comment.