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Margate commissioners agree to study code changes after residents urge permission to euthanize invasive iguanas
Summary
Residents from Paradise Gardens neighborhoods told the City Commission that iguanas are damaging property and posing health risks; commissioners directed staff to draft code revisions to allow humane euthanasia of invasive species, with a likely two-reading ordinance aimed for June or July.
Margate residents urged the City Commission on April 16 to change city code to allow residents or licensed contractors to humanely euthanize invasive iguanas after dozens of speakers described property damage, health concerns and repeated encounters with the reptiles.
The commission heard multiple accounts from Paradise Gardens residents who said iguanas are damaging seawalls and landscaping, entering homes and presenting hazards for pets and people. John Donahue, president of Paradise Gardens Section 4 HOA, told commissioners: "They are destroying our seawalls and canal banks. They are digging holes in yards and under houses." He said residents had previously been told by police or staff that they could euthanize the animals, but that animal control most recently declined to issue permits.
City Attorney David Tulsa told the…
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