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Neighbors oppose rezoning for 'The Acre' after alleged animal-safety incidents; items postponed to May 27
Summary
Speakers urged denial of rezoning for an animal boarding facility after long-running complaints and an account that a family's dog died while boarded. The applicant and neighborhood requested postponement; the commission approved a postponement to May 27.
Neighbors and pet owners urged the Planning Commission to deny a rezoning that would allow an animal boarding business to operate at a Crow Lane property, saying prior complaints, code findings and an alleged animal death show the site is unsafe.
Speakers during the public-comment period told the commission the property known as The Acre had multiple code complaints over recent years and that some were closed initially without adequate investigation. James Oshida and Georgie Morrell said their family dog was lost while under the facility’s care and was later found dead; they urged the commission to deny the requested rezoning.
"We dropped off Wendy on July 3. On July 6, they notified us she went missing… On July 17, she was found by a stranger deceased on the side of the road," said James Oshida, a neighbor and speaker. He asked the commission to reject the rezoning request that would allow more nightly boarding. (James Oshida, public comment, 00:16:19–00:18:20)
Georgie Morrell said she believed the facility’s operators lied about the circumstances and that the business had shown an indifferent attitude toward animal welfare. Morrell and other neighbors urged greater oversight and enforcement.
Commissioners noted that items 6 and 7—plan amendment and rezoning requests for the Crow Lane site—were listed for "applicant postponement" and included on the consent agenda. Staff confirmed the applicant had requested a postponement until May 27; the consent motion that passed at the meeting included that postponement.
What the commission recorded - Items 6 and 7 (Crow Lane/The Acre): applicant-requested postponement to May 27 approved as part of the consent agenda. The commission’s approval of the consent agenda was unanimous.
What neighbors asked for Neighbors and commenters asked that the commission and staff ensure: follow-up code investigations are complete and summarized for the public record; operational restrictions or denial of additional boarding privileges if code violations are substantiated; and that any rezoning application be evaluated with full disclosure of past enforcement and inspection actions.
Staff response and next steps Staff noted the items were postponed by mutual request (applicant and, in some cases, neighborhood) and that postponement allows staff time to collect related records. The commission’s action requires the items to be re-noticed; staff will include code enforcement summaries in the May 27 packet if available.
Ending The postponement gives residents, animal-welfare advocates and staff time to assemble records and for the applicant to respond to outstanding concerns. The commission did not take a final land-use vote on the property at this meeting.
