Proposed ordinance change would protect city kennels

KHOU checks in today on a problem we've never heard of: a city ordinance that forbids kennels to operate within 100 feet of houses, churches, schools and hospitals. It's a law that doesn't matter to most people, but kennel owners sure feel its effects — if someone comes along and builds a house, church, school or hospital next door to an existing kennel, the kennel is forced to shut down under the current rules.

City officials are now worried that the ordinance will drive all the kennels in more congested areas of the city out of business, which seems a logical conclusion. So some City Council members are working to change the law to grandfather in existing kennels: "You can't sell the business, but as long as you keep the business there, it will exist as a kennel," Councilwoman Toni Lawrence told Channel 11. Kennel owners welcome the proposed change: "It’s a big ... relief off us, because we want to stay," Susan Briggs, co-owner of Urban Tails in Midtown. "We feel like we were one of the first businesses that really came into Midtown and we provide a great service."

There's no word on when the revised ordinance might come up for a council vote.