BRUCE BISHOP / CHRONICLE

Victoria Wilson of Sheffield Lakes holds Samantha, a specially bred apricot Persian.

SHEFFIELD LAKE — Cat lover Victoria Wilson is fighting a city law that restricts residents to owning four cats in a residential area.

She has about 20 times that many.

Wilson, 77, is passionate about breeding cats and has about 45 adult cats and 35 to 40 kittens. She hires home health aides to assist her and her husband, Samuel, 80, she said.

The city gave her a deadline of April 20 to part with all but four of the cats, but Wilson is hoping for a reprieve from City Council.

Most of the kittens are for sale, but parting with her adult “babies” would be like giving away a child, Wilson said.

“It’s like them saying you have too many children, and which kids would you like to get rid of,” Wilson said.

The issue will go before Council’s Ordinance Committee at 7:15 p.m. Thursday. Two of the three committee members said they visited the home and are leaning toward recommending an exemption.

Councilwoman Diana Huska said Wilson’s veterinarian, Dr. Martti Putkoney, told Council that Wilson seeks medical attention for the cats if they so much as sneeze.

Forcing Wilson and her husband, Samuel, to move or get rid of the cats would be cruel, Huska said. “I think it will literally kill them, and I have a really bad feeling,” she said.

Committee member Dennis Bring described the Wilson home as “rather neat” but said there are a lot of litter boxes, and taking care of that many cats could be a possible health issue, he said.

“It could be a health issue, but people go and eat six Big Macs and drink a 12-pack of beer, and that’s not healthy,” he said.

Sheffield Lake Law Director David Graves said city officials began investigating when the matter was referred to Adult Protective Services by a health care worker.

Agency spokewoman Kathy Griffin declined to comment.

Graves sent a letter to the Wilsons on March 20 warning them that their home is not zoned for a commercial “cattery” or kennel and that they had 30 days to reduce the number of cats to four. Violating the law is a minor misdemeanor punishable by a $150 fine per day.

Graves said he smelled the odor of cat urine as he approached the front door. “I did not believe it was a healthy situation,” Graves said. “She has lots and lots of litter boxes.”

But Betty Sofranko, who lives next door to the Wilsons, said she did not know her neighbors kept that many cats.

“They have no impact on our lives,’’ she said. “Personally, the cats are not bothering me.’’

Sheffield Lake Mayor John Piskura said it is his job to enforce the law, but there are two ways the couple could keep the cats.

Council could amend the zoning code for the  property at 3591 Lake Road, and that decision would then be referred to the Planning Commission for approval, Piskura said.

Or, the mayor said, the Zoning Board of Appeals could grant the a hardship variance that would allow them to have more than four cats in a residential district.

Wilson said she and her husband have lived in their home for 36 years, and she thinks she should be grandfathered in to an exemption.

The four-cat limit was enacted in 1999.

Contact Cindy Leise at 329-7245 or cleise@chroniclet.com.

 

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