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Ayes: Councilmembers Cook-Kallio, McGovern, Sullivan, Thorne, Mayor Hosterman Noes: None Absent: None 18. Public Hearing: PAP-115 (PAUP-4) -Consider an appeal of the Planning Commission's denial of an application for an animal use permit to allow ared-tailed hawk to be kept in the rear yard accessory structure of an existing residence located at 2922 Chardonnay Drive. Zoning for the property is PUD-MDR (Planned Unit Development -Medium Density Residential) District Mayor Hosterman recused herself from participation on the matter due to a conflict of interest relating to her personal property, turned the meeting over to Vice Mayor Thorne and left the Council Chambers. Director of Planning and Community Development Jerry Iserson said the item is an appeal filed by Jennifer Hosterman of the Planning Commission's denial of a use permit for ared-tailed hawk to be kept in the backyard of her home. He presented a slide show photos of the site, the hawk's location, detailed drawings of the hawk's mew, an inside shot of the mew with the hawk inside, and the applicant with the hawk. He said the applicant legally captured a wounded red- tailed hawk with an appropriate license from the federal and state agencies, wishing to maintain the hawk for falconry purposes and has obtained the necessary licenses for keeping the hawk. The mew meets City requirements and has been inspected by the Department of Fish and Game. Staff has done research on keeping a hawk in a residential neighborhood, has spoken with representatives from the Lindsey Wildlife Institution, the California Raptor Center, the California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Wildlife Service. Staff has found that the hawk may never be released in a residential neighborhood per State and Federal requirements and the applicant understands and complies with the requirement. The mew is safe, sanitary and humane, hawk attacks are rare and when attacks occur they are not a result of captured hawks but usually connected to habitat issues relating to nesting and territory or antagonistic behavior. Hawks are kept by Falconers and then released into the wild where they can successfully thrive in the hawk population and indicated staff can find that keeping the hawk is acceptable and safe. He said one of the main issues and the reason the Planning Commission denied the application was due to concerns about classification in the zoning ordinance and what definition under the Code it would fall under. In a residential district, there is no classification for hawks, but keeping of fowl is a conditional use requiring approval of an animal use permit. Staff has made the interpretation that a hawk could be considered a fowl and keeping it in a residential district would require an animal conditional use permit. Staff is aware there is disagreement with the interpretation and other dictionary sources, and said the California Food and Agriculture Code has a more limited definition of fowl. The Planning Commission also concluded that the Code should be amended to define and categorize wild birds and other raptors and not include them under the category of fowl. The Commission did not express a concern in keeping this hawk, or with amending the Code to specifically address hawks, but they wanted to ensure there was a category in the Code to provide a mechanism as to the keeping of hawks. Staff has included conditions of approval which include requirements for the applicant to maintain all licensing, adhere to all agency requirements, the hawk not be allowed to be set loose in the neighborhood, hawk approval would be limited to one hawk, and that the hawk be City Council Minutes 7 January 15, 2008