Alliance members have been spreading the word about City Council's March 26, 2019, decision to approve a special use permit (SUP) for the operation of a poultry slaughterhouse in the City of Alexandria. Although some knew about Council's approval, many knew nothing about it, while others have stated that they were under the impression that this was a butcher shop, as described in the P&Z staff reports and memorandum, and the Planning Commission and City Council documents supporting the use. Many citizens are appalled at the idea of having a slaughterhouse in our city but believed that the approval of the SUP was a "done deal."

Well, it may not be, as we have over 1,000 signatures so far asking City Council to rescind its vote! A complaint has also been filed with the Circuit Court asking the court to overturn the decision. The City has 20 days to respond.

Thanks to all of you who have signed the petition. Please continue to ask your neighbors and friends to spread the word about the petition and about the complaint filed by 10 property and business owners and nearby residents who fear that the slaughterhouse will have extremely negative impacts on their quality of life, value of their property and viability of their neighborhood. They are also concerned--as are we all--about the environmental, health and safety hazards that could be expected from a slaughterhouse operation. In fact, many of our petition signers believe that a slaughterhouse has no place in an animal friendly city such as Alexandria at all.

We also need volunteers to help spread the word and help with securing even more signatures. We will be coordinating volunteer efforts over the next few days. If you are interested in helping, please let us know and we will get you involved.

Attached is a URL link to a Philadelphia Inquirer feature called Clean Plates, which posts inspection reports of food establishments in the Philly area. These reports include violations of health and safety, along with retail practices. Here are the inspection reports from the sister slaughterhouse (Saba Live Poultry), in North Philadelphia from their last eight years of operation, between 2011 and 2019. Our esteemed Vice-Mayor Elizabeth Bennett-Parker traveled to this market before the Council vote as part of her due diligence. This slaughterhouse is owned by the same business person as the one Council approved here. Although Bennett-Parker told her colleagues on the dais that the Philadelphia slaughterhouse had noxious odors emanating from it and that nearby businesses called the odors "unbearable," "stench," and that the slaughterhouse "attracted rats," Council, with the exception of Councilwoman Amy Jackson, dismissed her findings and voted to grant the special use permit.