Protect the East Huntingdon Cat Garden
The Issue
During a time when third spaces are rare and people increasingly don’t know their neighbors, Mariela’s “cat garden” was a wonderful source of community on East Huntingdon Street - a peaceful local niche where any passerby could sit and enjoy the company of the cats as well as the beauty of this historic home and sculpture collection.
Mariela has worked tirelessly for over 20 years to trap and neuter feral cat colonies across low-income neighborhoods in Savannah. Our best estimate is that she has fixed roughly 1500 cats, giving thousands of hours of her time. In addition to her TNR (Trap, Neuter, Release) efforts, she was caring for the (neutered) outdoor cats that lived on East Huntingdon Street - which led her to name her front yard the “the cat garden” which was a hub for community, education and resources, inspiring others to participate in TNR volunteer efforts as a result. Furthermore, with its location near Forsyth park, the garden was frequented by tourists who enjoyed discovering this quirky “hidden gem” of Savannah charm.
Mariela was not operating a business nor a non-profit. She is simply a private citizen who wants to open her garden to guests, continue her volunteer efforts and enjoy the company of the neighborhood cats. However, Mariela has recently faced difficulties with various government organizations – and has been instructed to reduce the number of outdoor cats, stop inviting the public to her home and cease the operation of cat rescue at the property. She has chosen not to name the organizations in question because she feels they are acting in good faith and she wants to preserve a good relationship while working together to find solutions.
The goal of this petition is to show the depth of community support and gratitude for Mariela’s efforts in the hope that this will help her to resume her volunteer work, restore the cat garden and allow neighborhood cats to live on East Huntingdon Street. Furthermore, by signing, you are stating your support for a zoning variance that would give formal legal recognition and protection for Mariela’s efforts.
In addition to signing, please leave a comment sharing any positive experiences you have had at the cat garden and consider filling out our survey on Feral Cat challenges in Chatham county
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The Issue
During a time when third spaces are rare and people increasingly don’t know their neighbors, Mariela’s “cat garden” was a wonderful source of community on East Huntingdon Street - a peaceful local niche where any passerby could sit and enjoy the company of the cats as well as the beauty of this historic home and sculpture collection.
Mariela has worked tirelessly for over 20 years to trap and neuter feral cat colonies across low-income neighborhoods in Savannah. Our best estimate is that she has fixed roughly 1500 cats, giving thousands of hours of her time. In addition to her TNR (Trap, Neuter, Release) efforts, she was caring for the (neutered) outdoor cats that lived on East Huntingdon Street - which led her to name her front yard the “the cat garden” which was a hub for community, education and resources, inspiring others to participate in TNR volunteer efforts as a result. Furthermore, with its location near Forsyth park, the garden was frequented by tourists who enjoyed discovering this quirky “hidden gem” of Savannah charm.
Mariela was not operating a business nor a non-profit. She is simply a private citizen who wants to open her garden to guests, continue her volunteer efforts and enjoy the company of the neighborhood cats. However, Mariela has recently faced difficulties with various government organizations – and has been instructed to reduce the number of outdoor cats, stop inviting the public to her home and cease the operation of cat rescue at the property. She has chosen not to name the organizations in question because she feels they are acting in good faith and she wants to preserve a good relationship while working together to find solutions.
The goal of this petition is to show the depth of community support and gratitude for Mariela’s efforts in the hope that this will help her to resume her volunteer work, restore the cat garden and allow neighborhood cats to live on East Huntingdon Street. Furthermore, by signing, you are stating your support for a zoning variance that would give formal legal recognition and protection for Mariela’s efforts.
In addition to signing, please leave a comment sharing any positive experiences you have had at the cat garden and consider filling out our survey on Feral Cat challenges in Chatham county
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Petition created on September 22, 2026