Ohio city bans exotic circus animals

The circus in Delaware may still have clowns, music, magicians and acrobats, even horses. But there will be no lions jumping through flaming hoops or trunk-to-tail elephants.

Monday’s 5-0 Delaware City Council vote to ban wild and exotic animals in circuses is believed to be the first in the state. It effectively ends the traditional circus in the coliseum at the Delaware County Fairgrounds.

“The real, overriding factor was public safety,” said Councilman George Hellinger, who sponsored the legislation. “If one of those animals escapes its enclosure, the circus says, ‘It’s not my problem.’ And our police don’t carry .50-caliber guns.”

The city denied a permit last march to Florida-based Circus Pages because it had filed late.

When some residents saw promotional materials for the event and heard reports of caged animals and alleged mistreatment, they gathered more than 1,000 signatures in opposition and began lobbying the city.

Public hearings, four previous council votes and numerous refinements in the ordinance led to the vote. Delaware Mayor Carolyn Riggle abstained from the vote because she sits on the fair board, which opposed the legislation.

Fair Manager Sandy Kuhn has said that she welcomes the circus, if done properly.

There are portions of the fairgrounds outside the city limits. “The challenge is that we don’t have the facilities on the county side to host such an event,” she said.

Circus Pages had asked Kuhn to hold a date next month for the circus, pending council’s vote. She has not heard back.

Kuhn said she believes the ban is unnecessary and driven by a “handful” of emotional circus critics.

“They’re animals,” she said. “To give them welfare and proper care is one thing. To give them the rights of humans is another.”