Here are my thoughts and edits on your letter.... take it with a grain of salt since I haven't spoken with you about your exact situation yet, could probably advise better after that, but here's a first go at it: I'm assuming you intend to ask only for hens, not roosters.... otherwise some of this won't work.
Dear Mr. Ericson,
Portage does not currently allow chickens on residential lots of less than ten acres. I would like to ask you to consider changing that policy. As you may have heard on the news, cities and towns all across the nation have recently been revising their anti-chicken ordinances as the "Urban (or pet, or city, or backyard.. whatever fits your situation best) Chicken" movement continues to grow rapidly.
As the cost of food -and the fuel needed to transport it- skyrockets, people are increasingly interested in eating locally and growing their own food. A few egg-laying hens make a wonderful addition to a small kitchen garden. In addition, many people are concerned about hormones and chemicals in our food: raising your own eggs means you know what you are eating. For people concerned about the humane treatment of animals, raising a few hens lets them enjoy eggs that have been raised without cruel practices such as beak-clipping, hobbling, and miniscule cages that are common in commercial eggerys.
Chickens as pets, not as agriculture:
Urban chickens raised as proposed are NOT an agricultural product. Agricultural use implies that the chickens are being raised in volume, and in order to bring them to market. Raising a few hens as pets, and for personal egg consumption, should not be considered "agriculture" any more than the tomatoes many residents grow in their backyard gardens.
Also consider that the people raising Urban Chickens these days usually consider them PETS. They are hand-raised from babies, named, pampered, and loved. They come when they are called and can be affectionate companions. Why is it okay to have a pit bull or python, but not a chicken? How is any creature less of a pet because it happens to lay eggs?
It also seems strange that horses are allowed in Portage on properties of just two acres, but chickens require a lot of over 10 acres. This is quite disproportionate to the physical demands of each species. Horses create far more noise and waste than chickens, and they are permitted on 1/5 the land, although they are hundreds of times larger. Does this make sense to you?
Why Chickens?
Home-raised chickens have many benefits. They are small, easy to care for, and provide protein rich food. You are able to control how the chickens eat and how they are treated. Chickens consume weeds and kitchen waste, and in turn provide fresh eggs as well as fabulous garden fertiler: reduce/reuse/recycle! They are natural pest control, eating grubs, aphids, and other garden pests. Producing food in your own back yard helps to minimize your carbon footprint, as it not only eliminates the gas you use to go to the store, but the gas that it took to ship the food to the store from its source. Raising chickens is a wonderful educational opportunity for kids, teaching them responsibility, compassion, and the valuable lesson that food doesn't always come from the store wrapped in plastic!
Concerns
Most of the objections that people have about chickens are based on their memories of barnyard flocks on farms. But unlike rural farm poultry, urban pet chickens are no more problematic than other pets.
NOISE ~ By allowing hens only, no noisy roosters, Portage will ensure that neighbors won't be disrupted. An average hen only clucks a few times a day, which is far less noise than your average dog. Its certainly less noise than any dog in my neighborhood!
SANITATION ~ is also an issue that is easily dealt with, and it is not any more challenging than dealing with dog waste. In fact, 4 hens produce less waste than the average dog, and unlike cat and dog droppings (which cannot be composted due to health risks) chicken droppings make incredible compost to fertilize gardens. Remember, too, that Urban Chickens are cared for just like any suburban pet, which mens that unlike their rural barnyard cousins, the chicken cages are cleaned regularly so that odor is never a problem.
APPEARANCE ~ may be the biggest concern in an image conscious community. However, as you can see in the news coverage, the people fueling the Urban Chicken movement are mostly in upscale neighborhoods. (Do you have a Whole foods Marketplace or other upscale natural foods market? If so, maybe language here like: They are the folks who shop at Whole Foods, and care deeply about their properties and community.) These are folks who care deeply about their properties and their communities. Their backyard coops look more like pretty garden sheds than the old farm coops some people might imagine. You can see by the attached images that it is easy to make a coop and run that is attractive and inconspicuous.
(Don't know what your predator situation is there. Folks here -and we are VERY urban!- were concerned about hens attracting predators such as coyotes or fisher cats or foxes into the city. If you think this may be a concern, possibly preempt it with the language used in our "FAQ" section which basically says that properly penned hens won't attract predators any more than a backyard rabbit hutch.
Also might want to pre-empt the Avian Flu question with language similar to what we used....someone always brings it up!)
(Here I have pics of 3 lovely chicken coops w/attached runs.)
Possible chicken ordinance elements
Cities and towns all across the nation are becoming are chicken-friendly, including Salem, MA; Portland, OR; AnnArbor, MI; South Portland, ME: and Madison, WI. Please see the attached list for many more examples. Although some cities, such as New York City, do not have any limits on chicken-raising, many cities have ordinances that are more restrictive.
Elements you may want to consider for a Portage chicken ordinance:
Permits some cities require a chicken permit and fee.
Qualifying properties most are limited to single family homes and duplexes.
Quantity many cities limit the number of chickens to 4 or 6. It would be nice to have separate limits for bantam breeds, as they are only ¼ the size of standard breeds (about the size of a parrot).
Roosters generally forbidden, as they are the loud ones, and they are not necessary to stimulate egg production by hens. Hens are generally quiet.
Sanitation requirements - similar to those of any other pet.
Dwelling chicken coops must be a certain size. A 3x4 coop with a 3x8 run is more than adequate for 4 chickens.
Containment chickens must be in a fenced area, not free-ranging, so as not to disrupt the neighborhood.
Proximity many communities impose setback restrictions (with the possibility for a variance in certain instances) such as: chickens must be no closer than 20 or 25 feet from neighbors dwelling, and/or no closer than 10 feet to a property line.
Butchering may or may not be allowed, depending on the city.
Thank you for your time. Please contact me to discuss the issue further! I would be happy to provide more information if you like. My number is xxxxxxxxx.
Sincerely,
Rev. Marion Koleski
Well., I hope that's helpful in some way!!!
Stacey
www.SoPoChickens.org (our new web site, not the one we used for our campaign... might be helpful for coop photos or other info...)
Dear Mr. Ericson,
Portage does not currently allow chickens on residential lots of less than ten acres. I would like to ask you to consider changing that policy. As you may have heard on the news, cities and towns all across the nation have recently been revising their anti-chicken ordinances as the "Urban (or pet, or city, or backyard.. whatever fits your situation best) Chicken" movement continues to grow rapidly.
As the cost of food -and the fuel needed to transport it- skyrockets, people are increasingly interested in eating locally and growing their own food. A few egg-laying hens make a wonderful addition to a small kitchen garden. In addition, many people are concerned about hormones and chemicals in our food: raising your own eggs means you know what you are eating. For people concerned about the humane treatment of animals, raising a few hens lets them enjoy eggs that have been raised without cruel practices such as beak-clipping, hobbling, and miniscule cages that are common in commercial eggerys.
Chickens as pets, not as agriculture:
Urban chickens raised as proposed are NOT an agricultural product. Agricultural use implies that the chickens are being raised in volume, and in order to bring them to market. Raising a few hens as pets, and for personal egg consumption, should not be considered "agriculture" any more than the tomatoes many residents grow in their backyard gardens.
Also consider that the people raising Urban Chickens these days usually consider them PETS. They are hand-raised from babies, named, pampered, and loved. They come when they are called and can be affectionate companions. Why is it okay to have a pit bull or python, but not a chicken? How is any creature less of a pet because it happens to lay eggs?
It also seems strange that horses are allowed in Portage on properties of just two acres, but chickens require a lot of over 10 acres. This is quite disproportionate to the physical demands of each species. Horses create far more noise and waste than chickens, and they are permitted on 1/5 the land, although they are hundreds of times larger. Does this make sense to you?
Why Chickens?
Home-raised chickens have many benefits. They are small, easy to care for, and provide protein rich food. You are able to control how the chickens eat and how they are treated. Chickens consume weeds and kitchen waste, and in turn provide fresh eggs as well as fabulous garden fertiler: reduce/reuse/recycle! They are natural pest control, eating grubs, aphids, and other garden pests. Producing food in your own back yard helps to minimize your carbon footprint, as it not only eliminates the gas you use to go to the store, but the gas that it took to ship the food to the store from its source. Raising chickens is a wonderful educational opportunity for kids, teaching them responsibility, compassion, and the valuable lesson that food doesn't always come from the store wrapped in plastic!
Concerns
Most of the objections that people have about chickens are based on their memories of barnyard flocks on farms. But unlike rural farm poultry, urban pet chickens are no more problematic than other pets.
NOISE ~ By allowing hens only, no noisy roosters, Portage will ensure that neighbors won't be disrupted. An average hen only clucks a few times a day, which is far less noise than your average dog. Its certainly less noise than any dog in my neighborhood!
SANITATION ~ is also an issue that is easily dealt with, and it is not any more challenging than dealing with dog waste. In fact, 4 hens produce less waste than the average dog, and unlike cat and dog droppings (which cannot be composted due to health risks) chicken droppings make incredible compost to fertilize gardens. Remember, too, that Urban Chickens are cared for just like any suburban pet, which mens that unlike their rural barnyard cousins, the chicken cages are cleaned regularly so that odor is never a problem.
APPEARANCE ~ may be the biggest concern in an image conscious community. However, as you can see in the news coverage, the people fueling the Urban Chicken movement are mostly in upscale neighborhoods. (Do you have a Whole foods Marketplace or other upscale natural foods market? If so, maybe language here like: They are the folks who shop at Whole Foods, and care deeply about their properties and community.) These are folks who care deeply about their properties and their communities. Their backyard coops look more like pretty garden sheds than the old farm coops some people might imagine. You can see by the attached images that it is easy to make a coop and run that is attractive and inconspicuous.
(Don't know what your predator situation is there. Folks here -and we are VERY urban!- were concerned about hens attracting predators such as coyotes or fisher cats or foxes into the city. If you think this may be a concern, possibly preempt it with the language used in our "FAQ" section which basically says that properly penned hens won't attract predators any more than a backyard rabbit hutch.
Also might want to pre-empt the Avian Flu question with language similar to what we used....someone always brings it up!)
(Here I have pics of 3 lovely chicken coops w/attached runs.)
Possible chicken ordinance elements
Cities and towns all across the nation are becoming are chicken-friendly, including Salem, MA; Portland, OR; AnnArbor, MI; South Portland, ME: and Madison, WI. Please see the attached list for many more examples. Although some cities, such as New York City, do not have any limits on chicken-raising, many cities have ordinances that are more restrictive.
Elements you may want to consider for a Portage chicken ordinance:
Permits some cities require a chicken permit and fee.
Qualifying properties most are limited to single family homes and duplexes.
Quantity many cities limit the number of chickens to 4 or 6. It would be nice to have separate limits for bantam breeds, as they are only ¼ the size of standard breeds (about the size of a parrot).
Roosters generally forbidden, as they are the loud ones, and they are not necessary to stimulate egg production by hens. Hens are generally quiet.
Sanitation requirements - similar to those of any other pet.
Dwelling chicken coops must be a certain size. A 3x4 coop with a 3x8 run is more than adequate for 4 chickens.
Containment chickens must be in a fenced area, not free-ranging, so as not to disrupt the neighborhood.
Proximity many communities impose setback restrictions (with the possibility for a variance in certain instances) such as: chickens must be no closer than 20 or 25 feet from neighbors dwelling, and/or no closer than 10 feet to a property line.
Butchering may or may not be allowed, depending on the city.
Thank you for your time. Please contact me to discuss the issue further! I would be happy to provide more information if you like. My number is xxxxxxxxx.
Sincerely,
Rev. Marion Koleski
Well., I hope that's helpful in some way!!!
Stacey
www.SoPoChickens.org (our new web site, not the one we used for our campaign... might be helpful for coop photos or other info...)
