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Woodbridge officials amend animal-control ordinance, say township lacks authority over SeaQuest/Woodbridge Aquarium
Summary
The council amended a 2007 ordinance on non‑domestic animals to make it residential-only after legal review found the township lacks authority over commercial attractions regulated by state and federal agencies. Mayor McCormick said the township will not regulate what the Woodbridge Aquarium may display and will not issue a permit.
Woodbridge Town Council on second/third reading amended its 2007 ordinance on the keeping and control of non‑domestic animals to remove oversight of commercial entities such as SeaQuest and the new Woodbridge Aquarium, Mayor McCormick said.
The change, the mayor said, narrows the ordinance to residential properties and reflects the council’s legal review that state and federal agencies — specifically the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Department of Agriculture — have jurisdiction over commercial animal attractions. “Quite simply, our existing ordinance is not legal and must be amended to eliminate any oversight on our part of a commercial entity subject to a higher level of governmental review and oversight,” Mayor McCormick said.
The amendment was taken by consent for second and…
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