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Caribou board to rework Chapter 3 into an Animal Control Ordinance; draft to address running-at-large, cruelty and fines
Summary
Board members reviewed police data on animal calls, proposed renaming Chapter 3 to 'Animal Control Ordinance,' and asked staff to produce a draft that could include running-at-large fines, an animal-cruelty section tied to state Title 7 and clearer enforcement language; no vote was taken.
The planning board reviewed data from the police department on animal-control and animal-welfare calls and directed staff to prepare a proposed rewrite of the citys current Chapter 3 into a consolidated Animal Control Ordinance.
Speaker 2 presented a table of police calls (pages 914 in the meeting packet) reorganized by complaint type and proposed renaming Chapter 3 to "Animal Control Ordinance" to give the city broader authority to address running-at-large incidents, animal cruelty and repeat violations. Speaker 2 said Bangor handles animal and domestic issues through its police department and cautioned that serious animal-cruelty cases create a large paperwork burden and are referred to the state under Title 7. The transcript records Speaker 2 referencing "Title 7 animal abuse" in the context of escalating enforcement to state authorities.
During discussion, board members recalled a previously used local limit on dogs (an example of 4 dogs per household in R1/R2 zoning was described) and raised implementation questions for urban-compact versus non-compact areas. Speaker 3 and other members noted Bangors model and suggested the board proceed cautiously on cruelty provisions while ensuring officers have clear authority to act on repeated violations.
Speaker 2 said a rough draft rewrite of Chapter 3 (renamed Animal Control Ordinance) will be prepared for the next meeting and given to staff or a contractor to assemble. No formal vote was taken; the board asked staff to continue refining complaint categories, potential fines and enforcement mechanisms.
