Feral cat advocates and a prominent Dallas real estate developer say they have come to a truce over cat colonies in Bishop Arts.
Tensions arose earlier this year after David Spence, owner of the real estate development company Good Space Inc., acknowledged trapping and relocating cats from his properties in the Oak Cliff neighborhood, telling KERA at the time they presented a public health issue. Under an agreement between Spence and cat colony managers like Lisa Dennis, he will no longer trap cats, and advocates will end the protests they’ve been holding outside Spence’s businesses the past several months.
“We both just wanted to move forward from this,” Dennis told KERA. “I really feel like things have moved in the right direction.”
Dennis, who runs the nonprofit Cats in the Cliff, said she and Spence met up with some community members recently during the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, and she wanted there to be atonement and forgiveness.
KERA reached out to Spence, but he was unavailable for comment. On Facebook, Good Space said the parties “are grateful to friends who shepherded the conversation.”
“Each of us now recognizes in the other someone who passionately loves Oak Cliff,” the post read. “Differences can be settled civilly.”
Dennis said in addition to ending protests at Spence’s Bishop Arts properties, she also agreed to take down social media posts about the situation.
“We would not disparage each other publicly, privately and I just really feel like this this ended so much better than it could have,” she said. “I have encouraged people to take down any defamatory post, anything that has anything to do with this family.”
In a statement posted on social media by both Good Space and Dennis, Spence expressed “regret for the suffering he may have caused the cats, as well as the grief felt by the animals’ caretakers.”
The statement also said Spence would make donations to four animal charities endorsed by Dennis.
“We have both learned from this experience and reached an agreement on how we can work together going forward to maintaining an open, respectful and constructive dialogue,” read the joint statement.
Dennis told KERA her hope is that everyone in her community can live in harmony with the animals that are there. “Let's get them fixed, let's make sure they're healthy, and take care of them and let them live.”
Priscilla Rice is KERA’s communities reporter. Got a tip? Email her at price@kera.org.
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