ALPINE — After reading an article about alpacas several years ago, Jill Bergman and her husband, Rod, couldn't help but be interested in the furry creatures. So they went to see the not-so-well-known animals.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Now, eight years after getting their first alpaca, the Bergmans care for 26 of the animals on their ranch in Alpine.

"I raised seven children, and you would think I would want to do something different than this," said Jill Bergman. "But if you love animals, alpacas are wonderful."

While the Bergmans' alpaca ranch has become well-known in the tony Utah Valley community, a neighbor who wants to develop nearby asked city officials to look at whether people would want to buy homes next to fields full of alpacas.

Carl Pack, the neighboring property owner who plans to develop some of his land, was concerned about how the area would look for the houses that will be constructed.

"If you are going to have the alpacas, I guess you have to do what you have to do," Pack recently told the Alpine City Council, "but my hopes were that it would be a nice back yard and not see pens for animals. That is my concern — that it's not blending in with the development."

The council heard the concerns in a meeting this week. And council members also took the time to review what the city's arrangements were with the Bergmans.

But with the ranch being in alignment with all of the city codes, including the number of animals that are allowed on the property, the council refused to take any action on the alpaca ranch. "I think it is important that we allow individuals the right to do what they want with their property — unless it puts a hardship on the neighbors," said Mayor Hunt Willoughby.

Bergman was happy with the support of the council of a city that she feels is becoming development-friendly.

"A lot of people moved to Alpine for the rural nature of it," said Bergman. "I know that is why we came here. But it is becoming less and less rural and more built up."

The Bergmans allow community groups to visit their ranch on a regular basis. They also do their annual shearing in June and invite the community to see the process that leads to a luxurious fabric.

"They are produced for their fleece, although the market for that in the U.S. is just developing," said Rebecca DeMasters, the Bergmans' daughter and ranch manager. "The fleece production has developed in South America, but it's real small here."

While the ranch is really just a personal hobby for the Bergmans, they have their fleece developed into material that makes soft, warm blankets, hats, sweaters and gloves. In association with a group of alpaca owners, they even sent alpaca socks to soldiers in Iraq, and have received great feedback.