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Sept. 16, 1999 By David Grant Long Amid predictions the chamber would be filled with angry feline aficionados at the next meeting, a new ordinance that would require the licensing of all cats in Cortez was rather reluctantly passed on first reading Tuesday by the city council. "There's probably no way we're going to be able to check each cat," said Police Chief Roy Lane in what may be the understatement of the year, explaining the purpose of the new regulation was to conform with state law by encouraging pet owners to get their charges vaccinated for rabies. Under the proposed ordinance, which will be the subject of a public hearing Sept. 28, cats will be treated the same way as dogs regarding licensing Ñ both requiring proof of rabies vaccination from a veterinarian before licenses can be issued. (While other inoculations to prevent diseases in dogs and cats can be purchased directly from veterinary-supply dealers, rabies vaccine cannot, and is available only by taking a pet to the vet.) Lane explained that the ordinance would also make the licensing process more "user-friendly" for residents, since all business involving their pets could be conducted at the animal shelter rather than by going to different departments in city hall. The city was forced to take over the animal shelter last year after the former owner moved his practice elsewhere, and it was placed under the jurisdiction of the police department. Another advantage of licensing cats and requiring they wear tags is that they can be
more easily reunited with their owners if taken to the pound, Lane said yesterday. "I'm sure some (with owners) have been euthanized because we had no way to trace them," he added. Lane said that while there has been no recent incident of a cat contracting rabies in this area, the city has a responsibility to take steps to prevent futures occurrences. "If we ever had an outbreak of rabies and we aren't doing anything to control it, the city would come under some scrutiny for that," he said. Licenses would cost $5 and be valid for as long as the rabies vaccination, which is good for either one or three years, depending on circumstances that are evaluated by the vet. Dogs and cats would have to be licensed by the age of four months and a deposit would have to be posted with the animal shelter by people adopting kittens and puppies to ensure they are vaccinated when they get old enough. Then the deposit will be refunded. Owners reclaiming pets from the pound must also present a valid rabies certificate or leave a deposit until one is presented. The ordinance also extends the period an animal must be kept before being euthanized from three to five days. In other business Tuesday, the council: -- Passed two other ordinances on first reading and set them for public hearings Sept. 28 also. One would amend the land-use code to include a definition of wetlands and references to federal regulations concerning construction issues. Zoning/building inspector Jeff Reinhart explained this is intended only to alert developers and property owners to these rules and does not itself impose any additional regulations on wetlands. The other would include language in the land-use code defining the building inspectors' right to enter a building when there are reasonable grounds to believe a violation of the code exists there. Reinhart explained that the ordinance gives the city "no greater clout," but simply clarifies its authority to enforce the code. -- Heard from former councilman Jim Herrick and his father, Dave Herrick, on the desirability of including the Montezuma Valley Irrigation Company's ditchbank -- commonly known as the Alamosa Trail -- in the city's budding trail system. Both maintained that the public has established an historic "use by right" because the ditchbank has been used as a trail for many years. The elevated ditchbank, which runs along back yards of several property owners between Empire Avenue and Alamosa Street, was the subject of a heated controversy two years ago when the city tried to adopt it as the first segment in a planned trail system that will one day encircle much of the town; some trailside residents protested vigorously, maintaining that an enhanced trail would encourage more traffic, resulting in the loss of their privacy and a possible increase in neighborhood crime. A cable was eventually strung across the north end of the trail to limit access, and another gate was more recently erected across it by Mayor Pro Tem Fred Torres and Bill Stroud, another trailside resident, according to Jim Herrick. "(Torres and Stroud) must think it's better for kids to ride their bikes on the streets," he said, reminding the council that his father, who is confined to a wheelchair and no longer has access to the trail, had been paralyzed in a bicycle accident on a roadway. "I want you to think about that every day," he said directly to the councilman. "I'm sorry you're wanting to use my property to go across," Torres responded. "I guess you can ignore the regulations and continue to use it like you did 100 years ago." Dave Herrick recalled that he had used the trail for at least 30 years, often riding his bicycle to work before his accident. "It astounded me that when I moved back to town, I didn't have access to the trail," he said. "I always assumed it was a public right-of-way and I never had the feeling I was bothering anyone." Mayor Joe Keck told them the city attorney is looking into the "use-by-right" issue and that a survey of the ownership of the land was under way to determine just what parcels the city would need to acquire to adopt the ditchbank as part of the trail system. -- Approved, in a related matter, an agreement with Hank Chism under which he donates eight acres of his property adjacent to the Carpenter Natural Area for a trail that will be constructed this fall. This first segment of the trail system will run from Centennial Park north along Mildred Road, then turn west just before the Vista Grande Nursing Home and meander over to the natural area. Work should be starting within a week on that project, according to Parks and Recreation Director Chris Burkett. |
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