Franklin County Commissioners have postponed a public hearing to update the county's animal control ordinance.
The board had scheduled the public hearing for January the 5th, but decided to postpone it after learning the Commissioner Noah Lockley had contracted COVID-19.
The board felt commissioner Lockley should be part of the debate.
The new date for the public hearing has not been set but it will be after commissioner Lockley can once again attend meetings.
The changes proposed for the ordinance could keep county animal control from operating within the cities of Apalachicola and Carrabelle.
Its a question of money.
In 2019 the county agreed to add a new officer to animal control with the caveat that the cities would have to help pay the increased cost if they want continued county response to animal complaint calls.
Both cities initially agreed to the terms which came to about 7000 dollars a year per city, which is half the cost of an animal control officer – the county would continue to cover the costs of vehicles, the upkeep of the animals that are impounded and even court costs when needed.
Now, however, the City of Apalachicola says it wants to renegotiate the agreement because they say they don't have enough animal calls to justify the cost, and the City of Carrabelle says it will not participate in any further cost sharing or other terms regarding animal control services.
The City of Apalachicola has said it will monitor and record all animal control calls in the city limit over the next year to see exactly how many calls it gets.
The City of Carrabelle also plans to discuss the animal control issue further at a special meeting on Friday.
County attorney Michael Shuler said the changes will also include defining the allowed length of leashes people can use to walk their dogs on local beaches as some people are using 40 or 50 foot leashes and saying their dog is under control.
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