Trying to convince city council ... advice?

[openheartnurse]

So I spoke at the city council meeting tonight and they didn't seem in favor of having chickens in town. I will have to wait now for the planning and development department to meet, because the ordinance needs to be changed for this to happen if it's going to happen. One of the council members voiced a concern of the chickens drawing in predators like coyotes and foxes. Any advice or remarks?

 

[spangledcornish]

Here is a short publication from WI Extension that could be used to help with some of the concerns associated with chickens in town.

"Producing Poultry in Urban Areas"
http://learningstore.uwex.edu/Assets/pdfs/A3908-03.pdf

 

[OldGuy43]

Is there any community near you that does allow chickens? Since we don't know where you are it's a bit difficult to offer an intelligent, targeted answer.

 

[openheartnurse]

Well I live in Washington, IL and to my knowledge there aren't any cities currently near me that allow chickens.

 

[EweSheep]

Did you go to the courthouse to get some information about animal ordiance?

 

[flypluto76]

I am from Washington as well and I know of several people who have chickens in the city limits. I think, as with any ordinance, it is addressed on a case by case basis. If no one complains about your chickens the police/city won't bother you. There is a person with a giant white goose penned plain as day by the overpass on the way to the square. Surely the police see that when they drive by and they do nothing....I appreciate you wanting to go about things the smart and 'legal' way, but its a shame you drudged up trouble for the ones of us flying under the radar.

 

[openheartnurse]

I hope that me trying to get a new ordinance passed in town for raising chickens, doesn't drudge up any issues for those that are flying under the radar currently. That would be the absolute opposite thing that I would intend. I would encourage you to have those people voice their opinion of raising chickens in town to the city council or Jon Oliphant ([email protected]) ... the more people that voice a positive attitude and push for this, all the better to help get this new ordinance approved by council. According to Jon Oliphant, there is no variance in the ordinance that would allow one residence to raise chickens, he stated that if one person is able to raise chickens everyone in the town needs to have the freedom to raise chickens also, which would take a complete change in the current city ordinance. I certainly hope that all will go well with this and I can start raising some little chicks very soon.

 

[chigger bait]

Poultry owners in our local city addressed this last night with our local city council.

It seems it takes warm bodies in favor of chickens to show up at the meetings to sway the council's minds.

http://m.johnsoncitypress.com/News/article.php?id=97650

 

[flypluto76]

I don't know what you are doing to put the word out about the cause, I only knew it had been presented to the city council by reading it in the PJstar. I would suggest you contact the guy running the East Peoria backyard chicken group on Facebook, he can help you. I know he is going to bat for his town on Monday at the courthouse. It might be worth your time to start a Facebook group of your own if you want warm bodies in those seats.

 

[chigger bait]

One of the council members voiced a concern of the chickens drawing in predators like coyotes and foxes.

The food source is already there if there are house cats and other family pets in the area, not to mention the rodents that cohabitant with humans.