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Daytona Beach considers ban on feeding pigeons
A business owner on Main Street in Daytona Beach says pigeons are overrunning his shop, creating a nuisance that is driving away customers.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - A business owner on Main Street in Daytona Beach says pigeons overrun his shop, creating a nuisance that drives away customers.
"The smell, and the feathers, and the nuisance of the birds flying around," Commissioner Ken Strickland commented on the issue.
George St-Pierre, the shop owner, noted that the problem was affecting his business.
"Quite a few people are really afraid of birds. They will just avoid it completely," he said.
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St-Pierre suspects a neighboring business owner is leaving food for the pigeons, exacerbating the situation. Strickland confirmed that feeding the birds worsens the problem. "When you put food out for them, it collects, you know, 50, a hundred or more birds," he explained.
The constant feeding has led to hordes of pigeons waiting for their next meal, leaving a trail of droppings in their wake. "People just don’t want to walk through that," Strickland added.
City commissioners are expected to pass a rule against feeding the birds at their meeting next week.
St-Pierre remarked, "Basically, I consider them a ‘flying rat,’ but I don’t mind the pigeons here; I just don’t need a hundred of them."
Strickland believes this new rule will help Daytona Beach reclaim its status as a tourist destination.
"It’s not as easy as people think to get back to where we once were. But we’ve got to do everything we can. Even small things," he said.