I'm an outlaw!! I had no idea....now what?

[Agnella]

I heard back from my Commissioner today. The legalization of backyard flocks in my county is going to be discussed at the next meeting on the 17th! He says he thinks they'll be able to approve something like 6 birds on .5-1 acre and up to 25 birds on 2 acres or more! Wow! I have no idea how long this process is going to take though. I do plan to be at that meeting to find out!

Please send your good thoughts/vibes this way!!

 

[dreamgirl]

Good luck! If you go to the meeting, which you should, bring pictures with you of how nice and clean your coop is (if it is), your kids taking care of the birds (if you have any) or a tleast be prepared to stand up and say how important your flock and the eggs are to you. If you have a friendly neighbor, bring them too so they can say how they are no bother.

 

[Agnella]

The Board of Commissioner's meeting was last night!

Overall it seemed like a favorable meeting for backyard chickens. Unfortunately they suggested property line setbacks which I'm going to try to keep from happening.

The public hearing is set for Sept 21. Anyone in Cherokee County, GA who wants to be an advocate for chicken ownership rights should be there! Wear yellow!

 

[onthespot]

Try to ask for setbacks from homes instead of property lines, and permits to be reviewed with any new home buiding permit application.

 

[Agnella]

Quote:
I did request that they reconsider the property line setbacks. Unfortunately my Commissioner says he's already getting pushback on the issue and that trying to get a new ordinance approved without setbacks will probably derail the whole thing. Which is, of course, ridiculous! There are no rules for setback on a dog kennel!

At this point, I'll take what I can get.

 

[onthespot]

oh, bummer. Oh well... if he is getting community pushback, the whole thing of ordinances is to get down on paper what "the community" wants. May have to move to a different community I guess.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote:
I did request that they reconsider the property line setbacks. Unfortunately my Commissioner says he's already getting pushback on the issue and that trying to get a new ordinance approved without setbacks will probably derail the whole thing. Which is, of course, ridiculous! There are no rules for setback on a dog kennel!

At this point, I'll take what I can get.

My city removed setbacks when they realized that nuisances were already addressed in other sections of the code. See what your city code and ordinances have to say about nuisances. Assuming that all reasonable nuisances are already addressed, mention that the concern is already addressed. If a reasonable nuisance is not addressed, suggest that the nuisance itself be addressed, not a specific cause, which would not allow broader protection from nuisances. I would do htis research as soon as possible and send your findings, along with some proposed language to each city council member well ahead of time so that they have the opportunity to review your material, cansider it, and even ask questions.

The reasonable nuisances I can think of are sound levels, odor, pests (bugs and rodents), health issues, appearance of coops or pens, being at large (off the owner's property). If a coop is large or electrified or plumbed, building code may need to be followed. Our wording does specify that they must be kept in a manner that is not a nuisance. An unreasonable nuisance would be something to the effect of "I don't like chickens" or "chickens don't belong in town."

 

[poulet_passion]

So how is this going for you?

I live in Toccoa, Georgia and was told this morning by the "Code Enforcement" Marshall that Toccoa does not allow chickens in the city limits. So I found this ordinance in the Toccoa Code.


Sec. 4-2. Livestock restricted in city.
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to keep any hogs, cattle, sheep, goats, horses, mules, poultry or any other such animals for commercial purposes.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to keep any hogs, cattle, sheep, goats, horses, mules, poultry or any other such animal in a shed, pen, stall, or other such enclosure within 400 feet of any residence or within 500 feet of any public street in the city.
(Code 1985, § 4-4-2; Ord. No. 12-2007, § I, 10-22-07)


But I found this legislation that will hopefully be passed soon:

http://www.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2009_10/fulltext/hb842.htm

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

SECTION 1.
Chapter 1 of Title 2 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to general provisions relative to agriculture, is amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"2-1-7.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Crops' means fruits and products of all annual or perennial plants, trees, and shrubs.
(2) 'Milk goat' means a doe kept for the purpose of producing milk and any unweaned kid goats.
(b) No county, municipality, consolidated government, or local government authority shall prohibit or require any permit for the growing or raising of food crops or chickens, rabbits, or milk goats in:
(1) Home gardens, coops, or pens on private residential property so long as such food crops or animals or the products thereof are used for human consumption by the occupant of such property and members of his or her household and not for commercial purposes;



So I've contacted my local Representative and if I have to I'll contact Sonny Perdue, but I definitely don't want to get rid of my chickens.

 

[CandaceD]

I just found out that I cannot even have my pot-bellied pig. It and my chickens have to be gone by Monday. Paulding County Zoning Commissioner granted me 2business days notice to find them homes.