Fighting city hall in Frederick, MD

[johnny daytona]

I was recently the subject of a newspaper article in The Frederick News Post in Frederick, MD this Saturday regarding the current ordinance in our city that does not allow for "livestock" being kept in our city. It seems they lump chickens into livestock, and call it farming on any level. We are a farm community. I can walk about 3/4 of a mile and see cows, but I cannot raise 4 chickens to collect their eggs. It's such a polarizing topic. So many are for, but many are against. The negatives are, they are stinky, and noisy, they carry disease in their feces that is deadly to humans. You can see what I'm dealing with here. I have emailed all of our cities officials, from the mayor to all five city Aldermen. Some have responded that they will discuss it, some say it will never happen. I want to know why. I want to speak to them all and help them understand why this is a good thing. The story in the paper was very fair and balanced, and I have now emailed local radio and TV to see if they will continue the discussions. Mr. Mayor my chickens are not smelly and they are not noisy. I will continue to fight this. I mistakenly through bad research thought it was legal in my city if you obtained a permit. I was promptly corrected when I went to the city permit office. They had my name and address, but no one has come to my house to give me a citation. I knew I would risk further problems by coming out as a chicken owner. It may be the only way to get our city moving on the matter. 100 major cities have changed their ordinances to accommodate backyard flocks. Now it's time for mine.

 

[MeepBeep]

Good luck on the fight, it's an uphill battle if you have resistance but it can be done... I was really surprised to see changes in Illinois laws recently that has allowed backyard chickens even in Chicago proper... Even before the law I knew people like you that were ignoring it, had a family member that kept a flock in their basement, they got busted, paid the fine 'faked' getting rid of them and resumed keeping their flock once the dust settled...