By STEPHANIE FARLEY

sfarley@gctelegram.com

HOLCOMB -- Benny Sandoval would like to keep his pit bulls.

But letting the Holcomb resident keep the animals would mean allowing others who are illegally harboring that type of dog to keep theirs, too.

The Holcomb City Council decided Wednesday night that option is unacceptable, with councilmen saying they would not modify or rescind the ordinance to allow pit bulls in the city limits.

According to Holcomb Police Chief Gordon Smith, the issue with Sandoval's two pit bulls came after a resident reported her dog had been attacked, telling Smith she thought it might've been a pit bull that attacked her dog. Smith said the resident pointed him in the general direction of a residence she thought was housing pit bulls.

During the investigation, Smith found two pit bulls at Sandoval's residence. Smith said he eliminated the animals from being involved in the dog attack but, at the same time, told Sandoval that he was violating a city ordinance against pit bulls.

Under the city's ordinance, it's unlawful for any resident in the city to keep, harbor or own a pit bull -- defined in the ordinance as a Staffordshire or American bull terrier breed, American Staffordshire terrier breed, or any dog with the appearance and characteristics of being predominantly of those breeds or a combination of the breeds.

Sandoval said that when he's home, the dogs are inside except for when they eat and go to the bathroom. He keeps them in a kennel when he's not home. Sandoval told the council his dogs had never been "a menace" to the community since he moved to Holcomb with the animals. He said he sent the dogs to stay out of state until he knew whether he could bring them back to his home.

Holcomb City Attorney Bill Heydman said the council would either have to change or repeal the ordinance to allow for Sandoval's request.

Holcomb Mayor Jamie Jarnagin said he understood Sandoval's love of the animals but said that if the council either modified or considered changing the ordinance, there'd be a roomful of people from the city who'd be opposed to the change.

"It's either/or," Jarnagin said of changing the ordinance to allow the dogs or not, adding he recommended the council not change the ordinance.

All councilmen, including Greg Cox, Jim Welch, Trent Armstrong, Lary Cole and Gary Newman, said they were opposed to changing or rescinding the ordinance because it's there for the safety of residents and the community.

Jarnagin thanked Sandoval for attending the meeting.

"But I knew that's what it was going to be," Jarnagin said of the council's stance against pit bulls.

Sandoval received a warning in August 2007 that he was violating the ordinance by owning the dogs. Heydman said nothing came of the warning and that Sandoval had not been cited for the most recent finding of his dogs.

Sandoval said he planned to attend the next council meeting on April 9 to again address the issue. The police department planned to follow up to make sure the dogs weren't at Sandoval's home.

In other business, the council approved:

n Nixon and Associates, City Engineer Paul Nixon's firm, to survey and determine the floodplain within city limits and what, if any, property falls in the plain.

n liability insurance renewal through Keller-Leopold Insurance, with the addition of employee benefit liability.

n renewing the city's employee life insurance policy, going with a $20,000 policy.