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Struthers residents complain to council about animal shelter, parking and odor problems
Summary
Residents described ongoing problems from a local animal shelter and a neighboring lawn-care operation — stray animals, strong odors and trash — and said enforcement responses have been inconsistent.
Several Struthers residents told the city council on April 20 that a nearby animal shelter and a lawn-care business renting space from the property owner are causing persistent nuisances, including stray animals, odors, dumpsters overflowing and trailers parked behind a residential building.
"She leaves her door open. Stray cats go in and out of her door. They end up in my yard," resident Tina Garment said, describing repeated nuisance activity at the address she named. Garment said children and animals from the site used neighbor yards, parking occurred on lawns and trash fell from vehicles.
Scott Kovacke, whose father lives nearby, described similar problems and said the smell from the site was "appalling" in the summer and a potential health concern. "It is an absolute health hazard," Kovacke said, adding that conversations with the shelter operator produced little change.
Mayor Catherine Chacon Miller said city staff have met repeatedly with multiple agencies and that the police and health department have been involved. "We've talked to the health department. They send people out about rats and things with the dumpsters," the mayor said, and she urged residents to share incident details so staff can follow up.
A safety-service official at the meeting said there may be a gap in the existing ordinance that allows trailers or parking behind the property; the official said staff will review the code. A police officer present acknowledged residents' frustration and said officers had been in contact but noted staffing limits.
Mahoning County Public Health Commissioner Ryan Teacock said the health department would take the complaints back to his team for review. "We could take a look," he said when asked whether his office could assist.
Council and staff did not adopt immediate enforcement action during the meeting, but mayoral and safety-service staff indicated they would coordinate with police, code enforcement and the county health department to investigate and determine whether ordinance changes or additional enforcement are needed.
