By Chris Munzing
The conflict stems from Brecciano's discovery that birds were the one thing that brought his cerebral palsy-stricken adult son, Frankie, a small amount of joy. Six months ago, after seeing his son's reaction to birds, Brecciano built a small pigeon coop in their backyard and stocked it with various colored birds.
Frankie responded immediately and enthusiastically, spending hours outside or watching the birds from the windows of the house. The Brecciano family was thrilled that they had been able to give Frankie, who has been in a wheelchair for the past 35 years, something to smile about. Frankie's doctor, Dr. Phil Goldberg of Massapequa Park, said that the birds are a great benefit to Frankie and are one of the few pleasures he has.
Brecciano said he made sure that each of his East Fulton Street neighbors had been apprised of the project and that each had agreed that it wouldn't be a problem. However, soon after the coop went up, Brecciano got a letter from the city saying that he would have to take the coop down. Brecciano said that the letter stemmed from a complaint from the neighbor behind Brecciano's home.
"He had said, 'No problem,'" said Brecciano. "Now all of a sudden I get a letter from the building department in City Hall." The letter called for the pigeon coop to be taken down because it didn't conform to the city's zoning code. Brecciano maintains that the birds weren't a nuisance to the neighborhood and stayed in the coop, and that such a relatively insignificant infraction shouldn't outweigh the relief the coop has brought to Frankie.
"I don't see the big hurt in the city bending over backward for the boy," said Jim Conlon, an advocate for the disabled and co-president of Citizens United to Remove Barriers (CURB). "You have to see this kid. His face just lights up. He doesn't have many outreaches. For one individual, the city may be able to work it out.
Brecciano and his neighbor took the dispute to court two months ago, where it was ruled that Brecciano had until July 25 to remove the coop. He planned to take his case before the Zoning Board of Appeals at its monthly meeting on Thursday, the day before the deadline, to try to get a variance so the coop can stay. It rests on cinder blocks in a corner of Brecciano's backyard and is 4 feet wide and 6 feet high. Brecciano estimates that it rises two feet above his back fence.
Long Beach Building Commissioner Scott Kemins said that pigeons are No. 1 on the list of animals that cannot be contained on residential property in Long Beach, a laundry list that features everything from livestock to snakes.
"We've gotten complaints from neighbors on it," Kemins said of the coop, adding that his department had heard from at least three neighbors, not just one.
Brecciano finds the local law to be absurd. "You can have 10 dogs and 10 cats, but you can't harbor pigeons," he said.
Whether or not the coop stays is a matter for the zoning board, but Brecciano will be there to fight for what he believes is the only way to reach his son. "I can't do anything else -- what am I supposed to do?" he said. "You're supposed to help the handicapped."
