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Letter to the editor

Kennel's neighbors howl over expansion

By EILEEN SCHULTE
Published June 12, 2007

SAFETY HARBOR - When residents moved into ultra-ritzy Signature Estates, they might have assumed that a million dollars plus would buy peace and quiet.

But there is a dog kennel right next door.

Over the years, some neighbors have grown weary of the yipping and yapping that comes over the imposing brick wall between the Sheldegren Pet Resort and Signature Estates, which has about a dozen homes, one owned by San Diego Padres pitcher David Wells.

Now the kennel wants to expand, and homeowners in Signature Estates are yelping in protest.

"We would not object if they wanted to add 100 cats or 100 rabbits because they don't bark, " Signature Estates homeowner William Schumacher said. "All dogs bark unless they're deaf mute."

Both sides have hired attorneys.

"The neighbors don't like the kennel, " said R. Nathan Hightower, who represents kennel owners Jes and Mary Ann Engelmann. "They are trying to eliminate it. If they had their desire, it would just go away."

The kennel averages about 35 dogs a day. She said full capacity is about 70 furry guests. If allowed to expand, that number would increase to about 120 dogs.

In response to the kennel's application to expand, opponents circulated a petition through Signature Estates and some nearby neighborhoods. About 60 people signed it.

On June 5, Signature Estates residents David and Victoria Giorgione sued the kennel, contending that it is a nuisance and that the dogs' excessive barking interferes with their enjoyment of their property.

The Giorgiones could not be reached for comment.

On July 24, the kennel and its neighbors will take their fight to the Pinellas County Commission, which will decide whether the kennel will be permitted to expand from 50 enclosures, known as runs, to 80.

Last month, several residents of Signature Estates showed up at a Pinellas County planning and zoning examiner hearing to try to stop the expansion.

"We're tired of the noise nuisance, " Santo Carollo said during the meeting. "We consider (Jes Engelmann) a very poor neighbor."

Said his wife, Donna Carollo: "It's crazy. The noise is terrible. I cannot enjoy my property. Please do not let them expand."

But Joy-Marie Kaler, who is within barking distance across the street from the kennel, said the dogs don't bother her at all.

"Signature Estates was built after the kennel, " she said Monday. "They knew there was a kennel there before they built their houses. They knew there would be dogs barking."

Kaler added that the dogs only bark at feeding times, about 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The kennel was built in 1960. Signature Estates was built about a decade ago.

The Engelmanns took ownership of the 1.7-acre property at 3440 Enterprise Road in October 2003. The family also lives on the property.

They turned it into a cat and doggie salon, where they offer grooming, boarding, training and day care.

Services include daily walks ($5), romps with Frisbee or ball ($5), brush and hug ($3) and snack and snuggle ($3).

The dogs sleep indoors at night, and then, starting about 7 a.m., are taken out in groups of about five several times a day for fresh air and recreation.

That's when the barking begins and the neighbors start to growl.

It's "insanity, " said William Schumacher, who built his house, valued by the Pinellas County property appraiser at more than $1.5-million, next to the kennel five years ago.

"At 7 a.m., 70 to 80 dogs are barking incessantly. On the weekends, I can't sit on my lanai and have coffee. We have to go inside and have coffee."

He said the previous owner controlled the noise better than the Engelmanns. In the late 1980s, one of the previous owners was granted permission by the county to expand but never followed through.

Mary Ann Engelmann, 39, said she and her husband want to expand now because "there is such a huge demand."

"We have pages of wait lists, " she said. "Any time there's a major holiday we're packed."

Mary Ann Engelmann said she has planted trees and is planning other measures to minimize any noise the dogs make. "This is my livelihood. This is what I've wanted to do since I was little, " she said. "This is my love."

Eileen Schulte can be reached at (727) 445-4153 or schulte@sptimes.com.

[Last modified June 12, 2007, 07:07:51]