Pigeons ousted from Collincote St.
Published on August 26th, 1998
STONEHAM, MA - It is believed that birds of a feather flock together. But if that flocking interferes with the health and comfort of the neighborhood, Stoneham's Board of Health will put a stop to it.
And it did just that on Tuesday night as the petition of Collincote Street residents Mary and Richard Branson was heard.
The Bransons alleged that pigeons belonging to their neighbor, Collincote Street resident George Grafton, mess their yard, pool and house, in addition to perching on and pecking at their roof.
"This has been a continuous, ongoing thing. We can't have people over," stated Mr. Branson, who reported that he has read up on pigeons and learned that they have the potential to cause lice and mites.
"We don't want them around us...I don't see why we should put up with it," he stated.
Mrs. Branson stated that her family has enjoyed its backyard pool for 21 years. Since the bird problem has been going on all summer, she stated that family members have not been able to utilize their yard and pool like they used to.
"The birds fly constantly over the pool," she stated.
The Bransons submitted a petition requesting removal of the pigeons signed by four other neighbors.
"We feel the problem should not have gotten to this point,"stated Mr. Branson.
He reported that the Board of Health advised him last year that a hearing for Grafton's request for a permit to keep the birds would be held and that the Bransons would be notified of that hearing date. According to Branson, he and his wife never received such notification and the hearing, held last summer, yielded Grafton the right to raise pigeons in his backyard.
A subsequent call to the Board of Health this year brought Health Agent Lou-Anne Clement to the site. Clement reported that on three occasions, she walked through the neighborhood and found no major droppings.
Grafton advised the board that he started raising the pigeons in 1996 and stated that last summer he had no complaints at all.
He also reported that his discussions with other neighbors revealed that they had no problems with his hobby. He could produce no written evidence of this, however.
According to Grafton, his flock of approximately 35 birds are inoculated and vaccinated as required.
"I don't want to see my birds on any roof or yard," Grafton stated. His hobby involves racing the birds, he reported, and, therefore, he discourages the birds from landing anywhere other than their coop. Doing so while racing, he said, will result in a "poor finish."
He told the board that he had advised Mrs. Branson to throw a tennis ball at the birds if she finds them sitting on her property.
"She thought I was being fresh. Since then, she has had a chip on her shoulder," Grafton stated.
He also stated that has spent approximately $4,000 on his hobby.
Both sides presented pictures to the board to illustrate their points. Clement stated that while her investigations yielded no concrete evidence of major droppings or damage to roofs, she did not take into consideration the comfort of the neighbors.
Board member Ben DiRusso questioned the validity of Grafton's permit.
"I have questions about the permit that was issued based on the fact that the Bransons didn't get a chance to voice their concerns as cited in the bylaw," he said.
Board of Health Vice Chairman Lou Golini stated that the board's primary responsibility was to protect the people of Stoneham and Chairman Michael Rolli reminded Grafton that the permit granted last year was conditional on future complaints from residents.
Despite Grafton's protest that Clement's reports which found no problems, the board unanimously voted to revoke his permit to raise the pigeons.
Grafton was given 30 days to remove them from his property.
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