LCRA
In the Brooder
- Jul 29, 2025
- 3
- 26
- 29
Our organization in Fort Myers, FL is currently engaging the community, and our County Commissioners, to change our county code/ordinance which forbids any chickens in residential areas in unincorporated Lee. While we are a partisan organization, this is not a partisan issue. We look forward to working with anyone committed to this common-sense goal.
While Lee County forbids chickens on residential property, 2 cities in our county, Fort Myers and Bonita Springs, both allow hens in residential zones. They began it as a pilot program, with a 2-yr sunset, to attempt to show the problems... but none arose, and they have extended it indefinitely. So, I can have chickens if I lived in the city, but if I live in a rural area, zoned residential, I can't. Yeah, that makes perfect bureaucratic logical sense. "What kind of hens do bureaucrats have? Rhode Island Red-Tape"
We got involved in this with a local woman who attempted to overhaul the code in 2020, but she met with too much resistance, and didn't have an army. So, now the goal is 'Strength in numbers'. We have created a page on our website, dedicated to changing local ordinances on backyard chickens. We would like to share the link, and hopefully make the email campaign to county commissioners go viral. The form can be found at:
https://leerepublican.com/political-issues/backyard-chickens/
Also, if/when we are successful at changing the code, we would like to share our success by helping other communities with this same problem, to secure their rights to self-sufficiency through backyard chickens.
While Lee County forbids chickens on residential property, 2 cities in our county, Fort Myers and Bonita Springs, both allow hens in residential zones. They began it as a pilot program, with a 2-yr sunset, to attempt to show the problems... but none arose, and they have extended it indefinitely. So, I can have chickens if I lived in the city, but if I live in a rural area, zoned residential, I can't. Yeah, that makes perfect bureaucratic logical sense. "What kind of hens do bureaucrats have? Rhode Island Red-Tape"
We got involved in this with a local woman who attempted to overhaul the code in 2020, but she met with too much resistance, and didn't have an army. So, now the goal is 'Strength in numbers'. We have created a page on our website, dedicated to changing local ordinances on backyard chickens. We would like to share the link, and hopefully make the email campaign to county commissioners go viral. The form can be found at:
https://leerepublican.com/political-issues/backyard-chickens/
Also, if/when we are successful at changing the code, we would like to share our success by helping other communities with this same problem, to secure their rights to self-sufficiency through backyard chickens.
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and Welcome to Backyard Chickens.
to have you here with us. Enjoy your time here at BYC!
