Neighbors Want ‘Farm’ to Find Greener Pastures : Northridge: Residents ask an L.A. zoning administrator to deny a use permit for the petting zoo and pony-ride operation.

A black-and-white cow munched contentedly on a patch of crabgrass, patiently ignoring the 18-wheeler rumbling by on Tampa Avenue in the heart of Northridge.

But if a group of neighbors have their way, the cow and the other animals that graze, peck and chew their way through the day at The Farm, a petting zoo and pony-ride emporium, may soon be mooo-ving to a new location.

On Friday, the neighbors took their arguments to deny a use permit for The Farm, located on Tampa near Lanark Street, to a city zoning administrator. It’s the latest in the ongoing saga of The Farm, which has been under the gun from politicians and neighborhood groups for the past four years.

“When I give directions to somebody coming to my house, I say, ‘Go to the corner of Lanark and follow the smell,’ ” Felicite Barton, who lives on Aura Street behind the compound, testified. “And nobody’s ever had trouble finding the house.”

A decision on The Farm--which could have been made at Friday’s hearing in Van Nuys--was put off by Associate Zoning Administrator John Parker to give owner Linda Menary time to file a form that will kick off the city’s environmental-assessment process and allow Parker time to visit the site.

Menary has had her menagerie and garden in the general area since 1966 because it is among the few parts of Los Angeles still zoned for rural activity and horses. She’s kept animals and grown crops on her 1 1/2-acre site on Tampa since 1976, when her pony rides took place on another property down the block. But she ran afoul of the neighbors--and Councilwoman Joy Picus--when she moved the ponies to the Tampa lot in 1988, which required her to obtain a new use permit.

Since then, a group of neighbors has fought to push Menary out, filing complaints with animal-control and zoning officials and petitioning to eliminate parking on Aura Street. In 1990, the city tried to shut the enterprise down but was defeated by a court order allowing Menary to operate until zoning officials made a decision.

Parker said Friday he was inclined to side with the neighbors against The Farm, although he wants to make sure the place is really inappropriate for the area before making a decision.

But Menary said her cows and pigs and ponies won’t be going anywhere as long as she can help it.

“It will remain a farm,” she swore. “I have no intention of ever selling it. And I have every intention of keeping my animals there.”