Article
Courtesy of The Boca Raton News
By Dale M.
King
Published May
1, 2007
When
David Shapiro moved from New York to South Florida, quite naturally he
brought his dog with him.
But when he tried to bring the canine into his condominium, the association
“put me through hell.” He said it cost him $20,000 to kennel his
canine for eight months while he fought the no-pet rule.
South Florida is famous – perhaps infamous – for allowing people, but
not pets, in condominiums. They do allow service animals such as those
who aid the blind or deaf. And some even allow cats.
But Rex or Fido won’t find a welcome mat at most condo complexes.
Shapiro said that after his battle with “condo commandos” in West Palm
Beach, he went online and found an organization called Citizens for Pets in
Condos, a Florida-based non-profit organization trying to overturn the pet
prohibition.
The group, he said, has taken aim at the “no pets” rule. “I
immediately became an advocate,” he said. “I just wanted to come
to Florida and chill out,” he said. But the battle over keeping a pet in
his condo “infuriated me.”
When Shapiro first discovered Citizens for Pets in Condos in January 2006,
it had a petition to overrule the no-pet rule. “I was the 1,259th
signer,” he said. “Now, the petition has 13,350 names.”
Citizens for Pets in Condos may not find much support in the condominium
community in Boca Raton. At Sabal Point, “the issue has come up
several times,” said association board member Tom Vinci. “It is
not advantageous for the elderly” to have dogs in their units, he said. If
you allow exceptions, he said, “It opens the door” to others.
And it isn’t a matter of liking or disliking dogs, he said. “I had three
dogs when I lived in New Jersey,” he said.
The situation is a little less severe at Boca Teeca, said Shirley Schnuer,
president of the Boca Teeca Unit Owners Association. Residents
generally frown on dogs in condos, she said. Boca Teeca does allow
cats, though, as well as service dogs.
She said she has heard the argument about people – particularly the
elderly – who find solace and comfort in having a dog. She equates that
argument to “talk and rhetoric.”
But Shapiro, who is also vice president of the Pets in Condos organization,
said the group promotes the cause of “emotional companion animals.” He
has been pushing for legislation that would enable persons in need to have
such companionship. “It’s as though the boards are depriving individuals
of needed medication.”
The head of Citizens for Pets in Condos said the problem is not the pets,
but the pet owners.
“The cornerstone of this group’s philosophy is simple,” said Maida W.
Genser of Tamarac, founder and president of Citizens for Pets in Condos.
“Allow responsible animal guardians to have companion animals. Put
the onus on irresponsible pet owners who ruin it for the rest of us.
Pets are not the problem; irresponsible owners are.”
Genser said the group not only has a petition, but two state legislators
from Miami have a bill in the hopper this year to reform condominium law.
Toward the end of that massive measure is a provision that would allow pets
in condos.
State Rep. Julio Robaina of District 117 and State Sen. Alex Villalobos of
District 38 have put in the bill a provision that would allow “emotional
support animals” for those deemed to be in need. To do so would require a
letter from two medical professionals.
Gertrude Maxwell of Palm Beach, another animal activist and founder of
Save-A-Pet, agreed with that bill. “There are many people in
condominiums that are desperately in need of a companion animal due to the
situation,” she said
Shapiro said the Robaina-Villalobos bill has received unanimous support from
two committees, but is bogged down in the Policy and Budget Committee.
“It’s still up in the air,” he said.
But state Rep. Kelly Skidmore, D-District 90, whose constituents include
west Boca and west Delray residents, was more pessimistic. “It does not
seem likely it will be pulled from its last committee in time to be sent to
the floor for a vote.”
|