BLAND — Concerns over feral cats, stray dogs and enforcement of city ordinances generated lengthy discussion during the June 8 meeting of the Bland Board of Aldermen.

A resident, Jordan Durbin, addressed the board during public comments, raising concerns about what he described as a growing feral cat population in town. He also questioned why dog owners are required to register their animals while numerous cats remain unregistered and are being fed by residents throughout the community.

“We have a serious cat problem,” Durbin told the board, adding that several neighbors regularly feed feral cats living beneath sheds and around residential properties. “I got a ticket over my dog not being registered, but there’s hundreds of cats, feral cats.”

Board members acknowledged the issue.

“We do have a cat problem in this town. We’re very much aware of it. We have been for years,” Mayor Merrilee Spurgeon said during the discussion. Officials said many of the animals are feral and that unwanted cats are frequently abandoned within city limits.

Spurgeon said efforts have been made to encourage residents to adopt cats or have them spayed and neutered, but solutions remain limited.

The discussion expanded to include stray dogs and animal control. Bland does not currently have a local animal shelter or pound and has explored possible arrangements with Belle to house stray dogs. Officials said Belle contracts with an individual to catch stray dogs and has facilities available to house animals temporarily.

The discussion later shifted to code enforcement and unlicensed vehicles. Durbin, having been ticketed for ordinance violations, told the board he believed ordinance enforcement should be applied consistently throughout the community. He said he had personally surveyed the town and documented numerous vehicles he believed were also in violation of city ordinances.

“As you guys know, I’ve came up here many times. I did walk the town. Yes, I took over 20 pictures of unregistered, unlicensed vehicles,” Durbin said.

Durbin cited several examples he said remained visible throughout the city, including a minivan parked near the school, an El Camino stored in a pole barn and two Volkswagen Beetles he said were missing wheels. He argued that while he had received citations regarding his own vehicles, similar violations appeared to exist elsewhere in town.

Spurgeon responded that other property owners had also likely received the same notices and were being given the same opportunity to correct the violations before additional enforcement action was taken.

Police Chief Charles (Chuck) Holtz told Durbin that if all of his ordinance violations are corrected, then he would ask the judge to dismiss the charges. This is not special treatment being offered to Durbin, Holtz said that he does that as a courtesy for citizens of Bland who become compliant with city ordinances.