Who Makes Chickens Illegal?

[Kiki]

Thank you. That made my day.

I laughed out loud too.

 

[3KillerBs]

On a smaller scale, livestock restrictions are often part of HOA agreements or sale/subdivision contracts at purchase based on the HOA, developer or seller's wishes.

There's that perceived property thing in action -- the belief in some elements of society that farm animals are low-class and reduce property values.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Citizens do indeed have a say on these types of laws, which is why we sometimes hear of folks getting their local governments to change the ordinances for things like raising chickens. However, I know that when areas organize into cities or counties or what have you, they often copy the ordinances from other, nearby areas as a starting point. Then they ratify them and amend them as needed, but as far as I know (which might not be far, if I'm being real), there is always due process and community involvement.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Are people who work in a zoning department elected and accountable to citizens, or are they appointed? And also, how often can zoning people make up ordinances and changing zoning rules on their own power, and how often do their changes need to be voted on by the town council?

U_Stormcrow answered it better, but as my old college roommate works in city zoning... zoning departments are about enforcement and planning based on the current laws in the city/county/etc. They're regular employees, not elected officials.

After I got chickens I brought up the subject of poultry to former roomie and she sighed and said, "You don't know how many people call and ask if they can have them. It's illegal in (the city she works in), so we're always having to write people up who 'didn't know' they couldn't have chickens and didn't bother finding out beforehand."