NORMAL - Fell Avenue neighbors are fed up with stray cats killing songbirds, using flower beds as litter boxes and leaving footprints on cars.

"We've had numerous calls from the area," Normal inspector Andy Wood said. He said the eight to 10 culprits probably find the 900 block of North Fell an ideal place to roam and survive because of the deep lots.

But that could come to an end next week when Animal Control places traps to capture the cats, said Walt Howe, assistant administrator for the McLean County Health Department.

It will be the first time Normal has had to resort to traps since the City Council passed a cat leash law in 2004.

As required in a 2004 agreement, the town first contacted the Sterile Feral Foundation about the cat colony, Wood said. Sterile Feral specializes in dealing with cat colonies and typically traps the cats, has them neutered, returns them to the same area and uses volunteers to feed them.

The system works, foundation President Sue Stelma said, because the cats no longer have kittens, don't wander looking for food and won't let other cats into their territory.

The colonies typically die out because outdoor cats only live about two years.

Stelma said volunteers canvassed neighbors in the Fell area and all but one bought into the idea. She said she believes there are only five or six cats.

But Wood said the town understood Sterile Feral would relocate the cats rather than return them to the same neighborhood.

The town does not want the cats in the neighborhood, so it went to the second option: having them trapped by Animal Control.

Stelma said she told the town two years ago that the foundation doesn't have an outlet to relocate the cats.

"Trying to find relocation spots is harder than looking for a needle in a haystack," she said.

And, she said, the problem could continue because what drew the cats to the neighborhood - neighbors feeding them - won't go away.

Stelma said the organization onlyn;recently learned of the Fell problem, but it hasn't given up. She said volunteers still are looking for solutions before the traps go out.

Warning to residents

Meanwhile, Wood said signs went up this week to warn residents to keep pet cats inside while trapping is under way.

Howe said Animal Control will contact the owners if any trapped cats have tags. The owners would be subject to an ordinance violation citation and fine for letting a cat roam.

Cats without tags will be held for a minimum of three days, Howe said. If officials believe any of the cats are adoptable, they will contact the Humane Society of Central Illinois to see if they have space and are interested.

Cats without known owners and those deemed unsuitable for adoption will be euthanized, Howe said.