South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

Y Bark Alone dog daycare denied in bid to double its number of dogs

Y+Bark+Alone+sits+on+Watson+Road+near+the+Watson-Lindbergh+intersection.+Photo+by+Jessica+Belle+Kramer.
Y Bark Alone sits on Watson Road near the Watson-Lindbergh intersection. Photo by Jessica Belle Kramer.

Dog daycare Y Bark Alone will not be able to board more than its current 50 dogs at a time after the Sunset Hills Board of Aldermen struck down a proposal from owner Patches Ellis to amend her conditional-use permit to allow for 120 dogs.

The board unanimously struck down the proposal June 11, after first hearing the petition May 14. At the May meeting, Ellis requested a second reading but the board declined.

“With this being a conditional-use property, I just think it’s a good time to realize that the conditions are not good for this business at this location,” said resident Pam Spiros, who lives on Julius Northway behind Y Bark Alone, during public comment to the board last week. “It should not have been there in the first place.”

The Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing on the petition April 3, and multiple residents, including Spiros, complained that nothing was done to curb barking from dogs being kept at Y Bark Alone, 10390 Watson Road.

Following the public hearing, the commission declined to recommend that aldermen change the zoning for Y Bark Alone to increase the number of dogs allowed at the business from 50 to 120.

A man who answered the phone at Y Bark Alone said that Ellis would not comment on the denial.   

Ellis first applied for a CUP to operate a dog daycare facility in 2012, but the petition was denied since the use was not defined in the city’s zoning regulations. A CUP was eventually granted to Ellis in February 2013, and Y Bark Alone opened in 2014. Under the CUP, only 50 dogs can be kept on site at a time.

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