Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The West Point city council discussed two amendments to a city ordinance on parking and to a city ordinance on animal control at the work session on Tuesday. The mayor and council will vote on the amendments during the next council business meeting on April 14.

The first amendment would further elucidate specific prohibited parking methods within the city of West Point that are not currently included in the city’s existing ordinance. This would allow the police department to enforce prohibited parking using a city ordinance rather than relying on a state of Georgia statute.

The second amendment would make further stipulations on the tethering of dogs, and dogs classified as “potentially vicious or vicious,” rather than just animals in general. 

Ordinance on Illegal Parking

The first proposed amendment would make an addition to the current entry under Section 20-10 on illegal parking, which prohibits vehicles from remaining upon any section of the railroad tracks. 

The amendment proposal would also add a second statement to Section 20-10, written as follows:

“It shall be unlawful to stand or park a vehicle, whether occupied or not, except momentarily to pick up or discharge a passenger(s): 

1. In front of a public or private driveway.
2. Within 15 feet of a fire hydrant.
3. Within 30 feet upon the approach to any flashing signal, stop sign, yield sign, or traffic control signal located at the side of a roadway.
4. Within 20 feet of the driveway entrance to any fire station or on the side of a street opposite to the entrance of any fire station within 75 feet of such entrance.”

The current entry on Illegal Parking in the city ordinances, without the amendment, reads as follows:

“It shall be unlawful for any vehicle to violate the following conditions in reference to the use, occupation of any vehicle on the roadways or right of ways of any city street or state highway within the city of West Point:

1. To remain motionless for any period that causes or may cause a delay in the normal flow of traffic. 
2. To park or remain on a sidewalk intended for the use of pedestrian traffic. 
3. To park in the direction of oncoming traffic; to park in any parking area that has been clearly marked by sign or paint as being designated as a no parking or restricted parking zone. 
4. Parking in any parking area designated handicap parking without a valid state issued permit.”

Ordinance on Animal Control

The second ordinance amendment would be to Section 4-77 on the tethering of animals. The current ordinance reads as follows:

“It shall be unlawful to tether any animal on a chain, rope or cable. All animals shall be housed indoors or in a secure outdoor area that allows for free movement sufficient to that animal’s size.”

The amendment would address restrictions for tethering dogs specifically, while Section 4-77 would remain for all other animals. In the meeting notes, a list of best tethering practices from the Georgia Companion Advocacy website are included. 

The list specifies that tethered dogs should be at least six months old, spayed/neutered and not injured or sick. 

The list also stipulates that the dog should be visible to the owner from their residence, using a trolley system. The trolley system, which would allow the dog to move from a single point should be at least 10 feet and mounted no more than eight feet off the ground. 

Other requirements include providing adequate food, water and shade to the dog while tethered, sheltering the dog during extreme or severe weather and not tethering the dog for more than 12 hours at a time. 

For the full list of requirements, visit the City of West Point Agenda and Minutes webpage and view the meeting notes from April 1. 

Another amendment to the Animal Control section would be to Section 4-83, on the proper enclosure of potentially vicious or vicious animals. The amendment would require a fence, or alternatively a tether, for the designation of a dog as “potentially vicious or vicious.” 

As previously reported by the Valley Times-News, the city’s current Animal Control ordinance defines a potentially vicious dog as “any dog that has been reported to have behaved in a threatening manner without provocation or in a public space toward a human. This can mean snapping, growling, snarling, jumping on or otherwise threatening.

“Another definition listed in the ordinance is any animal, regardless of their behavior, that has the appearance and characteristics of or a mix of any of the following breeds: Pit bull dog, Bull Terrier, American Pit Bull Terrier, the American Staffordshire Terrier, or a Presa Canario; Rottweiler; Chow Chow; Doberman Pinscher; German Shepherd; or Wolf-hybrid.”

The definition of a “vicious dog” is outlined in the ordinance as “any animal that attacks a human or other domestic animal without provocation with the following caveats: if the person attacked was trespassing on the owner’s territory, attempting to commit a crime or teasing, tormenting or abusing the animal that attacked them.

“Dogs being harbored for dog fighting or trained in dog fighting are also automatically classified as vicious.”

For more information on the penalties of harboring a “potentially vicious or vicious” dog in the city limits without proper registration, the VT-N published an in-depth article on the local ordinance here: https://www.valleytimes-news.com/2024/08/knowing-dog-ordinances-wp-residents-bring-concerns-to-council/.