Marion Council to refund residents’ dog limit fees after receiving complaints
A western suburbs council will refund outraged dog owners who were told to pay application fees to keep more than one dog on their properties.
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Marion Council will refund more than $1700 worth of fees to dog owners who were told to pay an application fee to have more than one dog on their property.
At its September meeting, the council voted to refund the 48 residents who had paid the $36 fee since July 1 this year.
The fee will also be removed from the council’s 2020/21 fees and charges schedule.
Last month, The Messenger revealed residents were shocked to receive letters saying they needed to lodge an application at a cost of $36 if they intended to “keep more than the prescribed number of dogs”.
For some residents that meant keeping more than one dog on “small properties”.
At the time, Edwardstown resident Belinda Stansfield said she had lived with her two dogs for more than five years and was surprised to suddenly receive the letter.
“As someone who’s lived in the Marion Council area for 40 years, my dogs are desexed, vaccinated, trained and have always been registered so I don’t understand what’s changed,” Ms Stansfield said.
“So for me to get a letter saying that my premises makes me only a suitable parent to have one dog just baffles me.”
Marion Mayor Kris Hanna said while the bylaw had been in place the limit had only started to be enforced this year with the introduction of new technology.
“This is not an issue council policed for years unless there were complaints,” he said.
“It was unexpected for the elected councillors and we weren’t aware of it as a problem.
“We heard complaints for example from pensioners who had just registered two dogs at the pensioner rate that came to about $36 then within weeks they were getting these letters.”
Mr Hanna said residents will still need to complete the application process to have more than the prescribed number of dogs but there will no longer be a cost associated.
“There will still be an application process and that is important because we ask questions like does the dog have a decent place to sleep, is there a reasonable gate and fencing and things like that,” he said.
“Anyone who has paid that application fee from first of July this year will get a full refund and the other people who per the regulations would have had to pay the fee will not have to.”