Backyard hens for eggs - part of the farm to table movement

[April Stoltz]

Please come to the city council meeting, this Monday evening (July 21st) to support the introduction to council of a pilot project for responsible backyard hen keeping in Lakewood. Councilperson at large, Cindy Marx, is introducing this legislation to council and Hens in Lakewood is asking all our supporters who can come to do so. This is the beginning of the process for legalizing hen ownership. The keeping of backyard hens for eggs is just one part of the farm to table/local food movement that is changing how we grow, buy and raise the food we eat. It is part of building an environmentally sustainable, resilient community. Please come Monday night at 7:20 (meeting starts at 7:30) to the auditorium at city hall and show your support for this pilot project. Thank you. See you Monday night.

[Jim O'Bryan]

An exclusive look at the proposed resolution to be presented to council.

The Cover Letter

Lakewood City Council
MARY LOUISE MADIGAN, PRESIDENT
RYAN P. NOWLIN, VICE PRESIDENT

Council At Large
RYAN P NOWLIN
THOMAS R BULLOCK III
CINDY MARX

Ward Council
DAVID W ANDERSON. WARD I
SAM O'LEARY. WARD 2
SHAWN P. JURIS, WARD 3
MARY LOUISE MADIGAN. WARD 4
Re: Proposed Resolution lor Hen-Keeping Pilot Program
July 16. 2014

Dear Colleagues,

We respectfully request your consideration of the attached proposed Resolution authorizing a pilot program for hen-keeping in Lakewood. As you may know, many communities have successfully permitted their residents to own a small number of hens for personal, non-commercial use, but doing so in Lakewood is currently prohibited by our Code.

Lakewood's citizens and leaders know that access to healthy, sustainable, and locally-sourced food is a major contributor to quality of life, and can be a decisive factor when people choose where to live. Over the past several years, the City of Lakewood has continued to nurture endeavors that bring healthy, fresh, and local foods to residents* tables by supporting community gardens, organizations like L.E.A.F. (the Lakewood Earth and Food Community), the Lakewood Farmers' Market, and other great groups and programs that advocate for and provide our citizens with better food choices. This proposed Resolution is an important step toward achieving the City's broader goals of increased access to affordable, healthy and sustainably-produced food.

Additionally, the proposed Resolution to authorize a pilot program would allow the City a maximum amount of flexibility in implementing this change, while also providing a framework of guidelines upon which we can build and improve over time as we acquire both experiential knowledge, as well as the input of residents, Lakewood's planning and land-use bodies, City personnel, and other stakeholders.

We look forward to discussing this matter further and working together to make sure that Lakewood's approach to this pilot program is thoughtful, thorough, and successful.
Respectfully Submitted,

Sam O'Leary- Ward 2
Cindy Marx - at Large
Thomas R. Bullock III - at Large

RESOLUTION NO.
BY: Bullock, Marx, O'Leary

A RESOLUTION establishing a pilot program to permit the keeping of hens in the City of Lakewood under certain conditions.

WHEREAS, it is necessary and desirable to establish a pilot program in order to study the keeping of hens in the City of Lakewood under certain conditions, with the expectation that appropriate regulations be at some point permanently codified; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to the Constitution of the State of Ohio and the Ohio Revised Code, municipalities have the power of local self-government, and the power to enact laws that are for the health, safety, welfare; now, therefore.

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY OF LAKEWOOD, OHIO:

Section 1. Notwithstanding any ordinance or municipal regulation to the contrary, the City hereby establishes a pilot project for the keeping of female chickens ("hens," for the purposes of this legislation), under the following conditions:

A. Zoning Districts. Hens may be kept only in an Rl Residential Single-Family, R2 Residential Single- and Two-Family, or I Industrial District.

B. Application and Permit. Before the keeping of hens may occur, a permit shall have mfirst been obtained by the Director of Public Safety. The permit application must include the following information: the name, phone number, home address and email address of the applicant; the size and location of the subject property; a proposal containing the number of hens the applicant seeks to keep on the property; a description of any coop or outdoor enclosure providing precise dimensions and the precise location of these enclosures in relation to property lines and adjacent properties, with specifications and drawings if available; a certificate showing that the applicant has taken a class in keeping backyard hens from a source approved by the Director of Public Safety; the permission of the property owner for the applicant to keep hens, if the applicant is not the owner: and the applicant's permission for any city official to enter the lot to determine whether the permit should be granted and the conditional use maintained.

C. Inspection. Within 60 days of the Director of Public Safety or his or her designee receiving the initial application, he or she shall cause the lot to be inspected. The person(s) inspecting the premises shall determine if the lot dimensions in the application are accurate; determine the feasibility of the applicant meeting the remaining criteria in this subsection; note whether any extraordinary circumstances exist, such as outstanding property citations or unsanitary property conditions, that would militate against the granting of the application; and within 30 days of the inspection determine whether the permit should be issued.

D. Personal Use; Limitations. Hens may be kept only for personal use by persons residing in the principal structure on the lot on which the hens are kept. No hens may be kept on a lot containing more than three dwelling units. Residents of no more than one dwelling unit within a structure may keep hens on that lot. No more than eight hens shall be allowed on any lot.

E. Setbacks. Coops or cages housing hens shall be kept at least 25 feet from the door or window of any dwelling or occupied structure other than the keeper's dwelling; coops and cages shall not be located within five feet of a side yard lot line, or within 18 inches of a rear yard lot line; and coops and cages shall not be located in the front yard.

F. Enclosure. Hens shall be provided with a covered, predator-proof coop that is well-ventilated and designed to be easily accessed for cleaning. The coop shall allow at least two square feet per hen. Hens shall additionally have access to an outdoor enclosure or run that is adequately fenced to contain the birds on the property, to prevent them from running at large, and to prevent predators. Hens shall not be allowed out of these enclosures unless a responsible individual is directly monitoring them and able to immediately return the hens to the cage or coop if necessary. A chicken coop and run shall be deemed an accessory storage structure if they exceed 80 square feet combined.

G. Sanitation; Slaughtering. The coop and outdoor enclosure must be kept clean, dry and sanitary; free from debris and offensive odors; and devoid of rodents and vermin. It shall be so located that adequate drainage is obtained, normal drying occurs and standing water is not present. The coop and outdoor enclosure must be cleaned on a regular basis to prevent the accumulation of waste. All feed must be stored in a rodent-proof container. No hens shall be slaughtered except in accordance with Chapter 918 of the Revised Code.

H. Transferability. Permits issued under this subsection are not transferable.
1. Permit Revocation. The Director of Public Safety may revoke a permit at any time if the permit holder materially fails to adhere to the provisions of this pilot program.

Section 2. The pilot program established in this resolution shall cease at the time Council should adopt comprehensive regulations governing the keeping of hens within the City, or upon some further Council action contrary to the intent of this resolution.

Section 3. It is found and determined that all formal actions of this Council concerning and relating to the passage of this ordinance were adopted in an open meeting of this Council and that all such deliberations of this Council and of any of its committees that resulted in such formal action were in meetings open to the public in compliance with all legal requirements.

[Jim O'Bryan]

To April Stoltz, LEAF, everyone that has appeared in Hen Hopefuls, Cindy Marx, Sam O'Leary,
and Thomas Bullock, good work at not letting this topic die.

I have had many good friends move from Lakewood so they could have chickens, everyone of
them are good people, great families that would have served Lakewood well for generations.
This should at least even the field and stop some of the leaving.



Lakewood takes another progessive step into the past.

If you care at all about this, or people having a voice show up Monday at City Council, it should
be an interesting council meeting, and a fun group of people in attendance. Bring your kids
and let them see the sausage making in the city firsthand.

.

[Jeff Dreger]

Just curious: Since this is being framed as a local egg source and the legislation forbids slaughtering, what becomes of the birds after they stop producing since backyard hens will spend most of their lives NOT laying if properly kept and not killed?

[Jim O'Bryan]

Just curious: Since this is being framed as a local egg source and the legislation forbids slaughtering, what becomes of the birds after they stop producing since backyard hens will spend most of their lives NOT laying if properly kept and not killed?

Jeff


Great questions. This is a pilot program, and they still have many things to figure out.What has
happened in other cities is that slaughtering is phased in.

Also there is a couple slaughter houses in the area that will slaughter and clean the birds.

I am not sure this is their answer, but I have followed this in other cities where we have papers, and
I have to say that once the dust settles down, rarely is there a problem, and rarely is there an
over abundance of people keeping chickens. In an era of people eager to spend $5.00 for a cup
of coffee, working that hard for eggs keeps the number of chicken houses in check.

.

[todd vainisi]

Ugh. This seems like a bad idea to me, but I'll try to keep an open mind.

[Will Brown]

I note that there is no provision for funding the additional expenses that will be incurred by the city. Perhaps a substantial fee for the permit would help the city pay the employees who will be monitoring this experiment.

[Grace O'Malley]

Why does everyone act like everyone will want to have chickens? For the vast majority of us, we'll never notice that they changed the law; most of our neighbors won't suddenly become chicken owners. This appeals to a very small minority of people, most of whom have a great interest in this and are willing to learn all they can to properly keep the chickens and invest the time needed to do it successfully.

It's never going to have mass appeal. Most if us are uninterested or too busy. I don't see it as being a big negative like some do.

[Bill Call]

If you are going to raise chickens which chicken is the right chicken to raise?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/ga ... u-buy.html

[Scott Hargrove]

Any update on last night's meeting? I assume that the trial passed but am curious regarding if there was any debate. I was out of town last night so I couldn't attend the meeting.

Scott Hargrove

[Jim O'Bryan]

Any update on last night's meeting? I assume that the trial passed but am curious regarding if there was any debate. I was out of town last night so I couldn't attend the meeting.

Scott Hargrove

Scott

Checking right now, we were in production, so tied up. Maybe Chris Bindel, LO's Council Reporter will
jump on here soon.


City Council President Mary Louise Madigan objected, sent it to the Housing Committee (Tom Bullock, Cindy Marx, David Anderson), and Health and Human Service Committee (Cindy Marx and Shawn Juris).

David Anderson had some objections and thoughts on making the resolution work. Number of participants, and how the permitting works (separate conversation with him), but is willing to give the pilot project a try with some changes.

So, it goes into committee, and...

Ward 1 Councilman David Anderson is in the driving seat on this one right now.

From Ward 2 Councilman Sam O'Leary, "This pilot project allows residents and the City to work collaboratively to form a framework from the best practices of densely populated cities that have implemented their own safe, responsible hen keeping, while making sure that those best practices are also the right fit for Lakewood."

.

[Christopher Bindel]

Sorry I dont have a lot of time to check up on this very much anymore and just happened to look today.

They did not pass anything yet, just referred the resolution for a pilot program to committee for discussion, which I imagine there will be lots of and it will take some time.

There was a substantial disagreement from members of Council over whether the main issues for discussion on this topic revolve around housing (coup building regulations, zoning, safety, ect.) or health and human services (possible health hazards). It was argued that the Department of Building and Housing also covers health safety concerns as well so they could manage both, but the split maintained. Before discussion, when O'Leary first introduced the resolution he ended by making a motion to refer the issue to the Housing Committee. Since this motion was made before one could be made to refer it to the Health and Human Services Committee a vote on his motion had to be taken first. Only if his motion was defeated could a motion be made to send it to Health and Human Services. His motion passed so to hosing it goes.

I am unaware of what the exact votes were but it sounded like there may have been 3 nay votes (in regards to where to send it, not on the topic itself) but I only know Madigan and Juris for sure.

I think it is interesting to note that the chair of the Health and Human Services Committee, Cindy Marx, apposed it being referred to her committee and agreed that Housing was the right place for it.

There is great divide on Council over this issue and it is going to be a hard uphill battle. Unfortunately, in my opinion, I fear they will not have the votes this time around to get it passed. I just hope if I am right it does not deter them. I think this can, and will happen, if they stay vigilant.

[Jim O'Bryan]

I am unaware of what the exact votes were but it sounded like there may have been 3 nay votes (in regards to where to send it, not on the topic itself) but I only know Madigan and Juris for sure.

I think it is interesting to note that the chair of the Health and Human Services Committee, Cindy Marx, apposed it being referred to her committee and agreed that Housing was the right place for it.

There is great divide on Council over this issue and it is going to be a hard uphill battle. Unfortunately, in my opinion, I fear they will not have the votes this time around to get it passed. I just hope if I am right it does not deter them. I think this can, and will happen, if they stay vigilant.

Chris

After talking with those that matter, I see 3 solid votes, and David Anderson looking for a couple
new definitions, other than that he would seem to be a yes vote.

Ryan Nowlin, has stayed quiet on this, but if he were sharp, and I believe he is, he should get on
the train as it has truly left the station.

Mayor Michael P. Summers is on record many times wanting a pilot program.

It would appear to me, this could be the beginning of a very progressive council, that actually
believes in passing laws that benefit residents instead of cracking down on them.

This will be dragged out a little bit, but I think it is bankable.
(From the same guy that broke the LeBron James story)

.

[Scott Hargrove]

Seems like the pilot is on track to be approved. I emailed my councilman, David Anderson, and threw in my two cents.

While I don't think I am going to run out and get some hens if this is approved, it seems like those that want to should have that opportunity.

Good luck to all.

Scott

[Nadhal Eadeh]

Jim,

I think your assessment is spot on. The deciding vote will come down to Ward 1 Councilman, David Anderson.

At the end of the day, Nowlin, Juris and Madigan will likely vote no. Moreover, I see Marx, Bullock and O'Leary as council members that are open to new ideas and concepts. I think thats a shot in the arm to community based organizations that are looking to get people involved in their local government.

The dynamic has definitely shifted with Powers retiring. In the past, he had 4 votes locked up on any given issue. That dynamic has definitely changed.

Nadhal