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21 JAN 07 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING - CITY HALL - #1 MUNICIPAL DRIVE The City Council of the City of Jacksonville, Arkansas met in regular session on January 7, 2021 at the regular meeting place of the City Council. Council Member Bolden delivered the invocation and Mayor Johnson led a standing audience in the “Pledge of Allegiance” to the flag. ROLL CALL: City Council Members: Dietz, Bolden, Blevins, Sansing, Ray, Traylor, Twitty, and Rains answered ROLL CALL. Mayor Johnson also answered ROLL CALL declaring a quorum. PRESENT EIGHT (8) ABSENT (2). Others present for the meeting by Zoom were: City Attorney Stephanie Friedman, Fire Chief Alan Laughy, Police Chief Brett Hibbs, Parks and Recreation Director Kevin House, Finance Director Cheryl Erkel, Public Works Director Jimmy Oakley, Animal Control Manager Hedy Cass. PRESENTATION OF MINUTES: APPROVAL AND/OR CORRECTION OF MINUTES: Council Member Bolden moved, seconded by Council Member Ray that the minutes of the special scheduled City Council meeting of 3 December 2020 be APPROVED. MOTION CARRIED. CONSENT AGENDA: REGULAR MONTHLY REPORT/ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Bolden to approve the regular monthly report for December 2020. PERMITS/LICENSE ISSUED INSPECTIONS PERFORMED Building Permits 12 Building Inspections 25 Business Licenses Electrical 24 Plumbing 31 HVACR 18 REGULAR MONTHLY REPORT/FIRE DEPARTMENT Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Bolden to approve the regular monthly report for November 2020 from the Jacksonville Fire Department, reflecting a fire loss of $85,500.00 and a savings total of $414,500.00. ROLL CALL: Council Member: Dietz, Bolden, Blevins, Sansing, Ray, Traylor, Twitty, and Rains voted AYE. MOTION CARRIED. WATER DEPARTMENT: WASTEWATER DEPARTMENTS: FIRE DEPARTMENT: POLICE DEPARTMENT: STREET DEPARTMENT: SANITATION DEPARTMENT: PARKS & RECREATION: PLANNING COMMISSION: 1 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. COMMITTEE(S): Used Car Lot Committee (Council Member Mashburn) No report submitted. GENERAL: ORDINANCE 1651 (#01-2021) AN ORDINANCE TO REPEAL AND REPLACE PORTIONS OF JACKSONVILLE MUNICIPAL CODE § 6.04.045, PIT BULL BAN, FOR THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. Council Member Rains moved, seconded by Council Member Blevins to place Ordinance 1651 on FIRST READING. ROLL CALL: Council Member Dietz, Bolden, Blevins, Ray, Traylor, and Rain voted AYE. Council Member Sansing, and Twitty voted NAY. MOTION CARRIED. Whereupon City Attorney Friedman read the heading of Ordinance 1651. Council Member Blevins explained that the City has a full ban regarding Pit Bulls and there are still people who have Pit Bulls in the City. This Ordinance would allow people to have Pit Bulls in the City under an extremely strict registration process, which is the same registration process that has been accepted in Little Rock and Cabot. It means that people will have to pay for the registration process, they have to have $300,000 in insurance, the dog has to be tagged with a GPS, neutered, and it has to be kept in a protective area. He stated that currently there are dogs in the City and there is no protection at all, this will allow honest people who want to have Pit Bulls to have their animals in the City to be allowed to have their pet without having to hide them as they are doing now. He then noted that both Little Rock and Cabot have adopted these provisions and is working in those cities. He stated that he has spoken with Code Enforcement and Hedy at Animal Control who support this Ordinance as well as we have Chief Hibbs to speak regarding the Ordinance. Animal Control Manager Hedy Cass stated that she would love to see the ban lifted, noting that the ban has been in place since July 2007. She related that in 2005 there were 30 bite cases regarding banned breeds, 2006 there were 28, 2007 it went to 12, saying that from thereon it went to 3 and then even down to 1. She then pointed out that this year there were 6 bite cases with banned breeds. She stated that she would like to see the ban lifted because responsible owners could own a dog they love and will pay the permit fee and obtain the insurance they need. She then added that on the other hand they deal with so many irresponsible dog owners currently, can it work? She related that currently there are more Pit Bulls and Pit mixes at the shelter than regular breeds. She stated that while she would like to see this work but in 2018 they picked 129 Pit Bulls, 2019 they picked up 136 Pit Bulls, last year in 2020 they picked up 180 Pit Bulls. She then noted that in July 2007 there were 180 Pit Bulls registered, the last count for 2020 was 180. She then noted that 7 days into the new year they have already picked up 5 Pit Bulls. She questioned if the timing is right to lift the ban, saying that the numbers are not in our favor. She stated that the bite cases go up, and people do not claim the Pit Bulls they pick up or they say they will just get another one. She stated that she hates that because she would like to see 2 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. the ban lifted but there is still so much negativity, regarding the requirements for the permit fee or the insurance requirements. She stated she is conflicted and is not sure if it can work or does the Ordinance need to be rewritten to a more workable situation. Mayor Johnson questioned if the Ordinance being presented is enforceable. Manager Cass stated that it would not matter how many people are hired, because Pit Bulls are everywhere right now in the City. She explained that they issue citations and confiscate the dog and even do search warrants if needed and that does not work anymore because they bring the dogs back after the search warrant is fulfilled. She stated that it is all about being a responsible dog owner and right now she is questioning that regarding the Pit Bulls that are currently in the City. She stated that if people wanted to obey the law they would not have a Pit Bull in the City right now. Council Member Ray questioned if the owners of confiscated Pit Bulls have been fined or are they Pit Bulls running on the streets. Manager Cass stated that most of the Pit Bulls have been strays, no owner shows up to claim the dogs. Council Member Ray noted that the current Ordinance has fines associated with having Pit Bulls, pointing out that the Ordinance was adopted by Jacksonville and other cities because residents were being attacked by these dogs. He pointed out that the Ordinance was adopted to try and prevent this. He stated that if Animal Control has a search warrant and a dog is confiscated then the owner needs to be fined. Manager Cass stated that owners are fined but whatever happens in Court is beyond her purview. Council Member Blevins confirmed with Manager Cass that the reason the numbers were so high were not because of incidents but because people saw a dog and they called it in. Manager Cass clarified that the numbers are not counting the bite cases. She stated that before the band went into effect the numbers were “sky high” then after July 2007 the numbers went down to one or even zero bite cases. She then added that as of 2020 the bite cases are up to 6 cases of banned breeds. She also related that the highest number of bite cases with regular breed including the Lab breed is 4. She related that following numbers regarding the bite cases for banned breeds, noting that the ban went into effect in 2007. 2005 – 30 and 10 dogs were declared vicious 2006 – 28 and 12 dogs were declared vicious and 1 dangerous 2007 – 12 and 1 dog was declared vicious and 1 dangerous 2008 – 3 bite cases for the banned breeds 3 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. 2009 – 3 bite cases for the banned breeds 2010 – 0 bite cases 2011 – 2 bite cases 2012 – 0 bite cases 2013 – 1 bite case 2014 – 0 bite cases 2015 – 0 bite cases 2016 – 1 bite case 2017 – 2 bite cases and 1 declared vicious 2018 – 1 bite case 2019 – 0 bite cases 2020 – 6 bite cases and 1 declared dangerous, which was a service dog according to the owner. She explained that it was declared dangerous because a service cannot be aggressive. Council Member Bolden reminded everyone that a few years ago, he sponsored an Ordinance for this and had done a lot of extensive research and received a lot of emails from across the United States from people who had been mauled by Pit Bulls. He stated that the Ordinance set up the guideline, citing that pins had to have concrete and insurance requirements. Manager Cass noted that it is standard that when a city proposes to lift a ban that emails are sent to discourage lifting the ban. She noted that while she did not receive the emails this time, Council Member Blevins did. Council Member Bolden stated that his point is that people are not following the law now and have Pit Bulls illegally in the City. He stated that if they are not following the law now they are not going to be following any new laws set by Ordinance regulating the ownership of Pit Bulls. He stated that the climate currently is not conducive for the City to consider this Ordinance because people are not following the instructions that are already set forth. Council Member Blevins pointed out that these options were not available. He stated that if the options were available then we would have had some people sign up and register. Council Member Bolden stated that we attempted to do this but when you look at how many people who are going against it already – the first sign if anybody is going to do as requested is if they are already following the law. Manager Cass stated that she would agree with those sentiments. Council Member Bolden reiterated that there are a lot of people already going against the Ordinance. He related a conversation he overheard standing in line at a store, where someone stated that the City would not get their Pit Bulls adding that they said they had five Pit Bulls and were breeding them. Manager Cass stated that she had the same kind of call last week. 4 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. Council Member Bolden stated that a dog’s behavior is based on the owner but when you have an owner that is already rebellious against the law… Manager Cass related that today she had to go to Stonewall Subdivision because apparently the dogs got through the fence, the people just moved in, so they have 3 Pit Bull dogs. She stated that she checked back today, explaining that the new residents need time to move the Pit Bulls. She added that she would like to give them that time because they are nice people and the dogs are great and not aggressive. She pointed out that people like that are responsible pet owners, they did not lie, or say they would fight this, they just need some time. She reiterated that the dogs are great because they have responsible pet owners, adding that she hates to take the dogs away from them. She continued saying for that reason that is why she would like to see the ban lifted but just at the right time and this is not the right time. We have too many people who are irresponsible and the good pet owners have to pay for the bad ones. Council Member Sansing asked Manager Cass if she is familiar with a break stick and is there any other dog besides a Pit Bull that the owners should have a break stick. Manager Cass responded saying that there are several breeds that have a powerful bite, and that she is not sure about a break stick, saying that she has only had to use her catch pole one time to slam on a Pit Bulls nose because he had hold of a Bull Terrier on Adams Street. The lady was babysitting her daughter’s Pit Bull and they locked up. She stated that people think a water hose would help but it doesn’t, she had to slam the catch pole on his nose. She stated that the Pit Bull was confiscated and moved out of the City. She then noted that while other breeds have a powerful bite, the jaws of a Pit Bull are built different. Council Member Sansing pointed out that Pit Bulls are genetically trained to bite and hang on, while most other dogs will fight, let go and multiple bite. A Pit Bull will bite and hang on, which is why a break stick is applied to break the bite. Manager Cass stated that genetically the Pit Bull doesn’t even exist, because the Staffordshire Terrier came to the United States in 1800’s from England, the breed split and one became a show dog and one went to the fighting ring, which is how it started. She related that an English Bull dog is trained on bulls, so there are so many breeds that we are not aware of but they can kill. Council Member Sansing stated that there is information available on dogsbite.org; noting that in the fifteen years between 2005 and 2019, 521 people were killed by dogs, 346 were by Pit Bulls, all other breeds involved, 66% were Pit Bulls. 5 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. Manager Cass stated there are website with good information and others with bad information. She stated the Pit Bull is really powerful and can do a lot of damage. She stated that there are other dogs that can do a lot of damage too. She then related that now is not the right time to lift the ban. Call for a question. No motion on the floor. Council Member Ray moved to approve Ordinance 1651 on FIRST READING and SUSPEND THE RULES to place Ordinance 1651 on SECOND READING. Chief Hibbs was called to address the City Council. Chief Hibbs related that Code Enforcement does not write tickets related to animals. He stated that he backs Manager Cass in her needs and supports animal control with backup when they go to a house to remove a Pit Bull and the owner will not hand the animal over. He explained their involvement is to support Animal Control. Council Member Dietz stated that the high numbers of illegal dogs are concerning to him. He stated that when people buy houses and move into Jacksonville and go get their City water, we need to have some type of form that makes them aware of some of things that cannot happen in Jacksonville. He stated that this would offer them notice. Manager Cass supported the use of a notice for residents, citing that Lakeside Estates is one of the familiar addresses where they go out to and in the lease, they have a stipulation that no Pit Bulls are allowed but we pick up a lot of Pit Bulls there. She stated that it is the irresponsible owner that does not care. She stated that if they call regarding a Pit Bull, apparently, they can go into the mobile home and get the dog for us. She noted that there are restrictions regarding the ADA, which is one of the currently problems they are experiencing, people claiming their Pit Bull is a service dog. She noted that an emotional support or therapy dog is not covered by the ADA. She stated that most people are not aware, noting that you can buy something on line that says the dog is covered by the ADA but it is not. Council Member Dietz stated that they would sign a form when they go get their water turned on that they are aware Pit Bulls are not allowed in the City. He stated that would provide the City with more legal rights for enforcement. He related that he is aware of people who close houses that do not know that Pit Bulls are ban in Jacksonville. Council Member Bolden stated that the City could contact the Water Commission and see if they would be willing to provide that to their customers. 6 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. Council Member Dietz stated that there are other things that could be helpful for people to know when they move into the City and since you have to apply for water in person. He stated that he has talked to people moving to Jacksonville who were not aware of the Pit Bull ban. Manager Cass noted that the Animal Shelter has a flyer they can provide regarding the rules and regulations regarding City license. Council Member Ray proposed that they get together and work it out with the Water Commission. Council Member Ray stated they would be willing to table his motion. Manager Cass expressed her support to table and return with options. Council Member Bolden stated that he does not see the purpose in tabling the motion, explaining that it is a dead issue at this time. Manager Cass stated that she told Council Member Blevins yesterday that this would require better research, because Sherwood still has its ban. Council Member Bolden stated that he terminated his previous Ordinance when he realized the different research needed. Council Member Sansing stated that the before ban and after ban bite numbers are conclusive. Manager Cass stated that they do their jobs efficiently but they cannot control what comes into the City, adding that some people ignore the law. She stated that it is sad because she would like to give the Ordinance to the people that are willing to do whatever it takes to keep their dog. Council Member Rose requested the total bite cases between 2005 and 2020 regarding all breeds. Manager Cass read the numbers by year 2005 – 79, 2006 – 61, 2007 – 39, 2008 – 50, 2009 – 40, 2010 – 34, 2011 – 39, 2012 – 29, 2013 – 38, 2014 – 39, 2015 – 28, 2016 – 35, 2017 – 27, 2018 – 13, 2019 – 10, 2020 – 10. Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Rains to approve Ordinance 1651 on FIRST READING and SUSPEND THE RULES to place Ordinance 1651 on SECOND READING. ROLL CALL: Council Member Dietz, Blevins, Ray, and Rains voted AYE. Council Member Bolden, Sansing, Traylor, and Twitty voted NAY. MOTION FAILED. Council Member Ray restated his suggestion that they get together and bring something back to the City Council. 7 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 7, 2021 6:00 P.M. – 6:43 P.M. APPOINTMENTS: A&P COMMISSION Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Bolden to appoint Council Member Traylor to the A&P Commission. MOTION CARRIED. In response to a question posed by Council Member Blevins, Public Works Director Jimmy Oakley responded that he had not yet heard back from Union Pacific Railroad. ANNOUNCEMENTS: ADJOURNMENT: Without objection, Mayor Johnson adjourned the meeting at approximately 6:43 p.m. MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully, ________________________ _________________________ Susan L. Davitt MAYOR BOB JOHNSON City Clerk-Treasurer 8