Residents say ordinance is 'fowl'
Homeowner circulates petition in favor of birds
Maria Hinton (left) explains to members of the public safety committee why she believes chickens should be allowed to be kept as pets within the city. Photo by EMILY CANNING-DEAN
WADSWORTH – Some residents had their feathers ruffled when learning about an ordinance that prohibits them from keeping chickens on their property.
First Street resident Maria Hinton recently received a letter from the city stating that she was in violation of a city ordinance by keeping chickens on her property. Hinton said the letter instructed her that she needed to remove the chickens from her property within 15 days.
“I was hoping the city could possibly change the ordinance or update it,” Hinton asked members of the public safety committee June 12.
Hinton said that after doing a little research she has found that some communities have updated their ordinances to allow chickens to be raised within their city limits as pets.
“I own two lots and my lot goes back very deep,” Hinton said. “They say five chickens create as much waste as one dog and you can feed chicken scraps which cuts down on the amount of compost going into landfills. Chickens also eat fleas and other bugs within the yard.”
Hinton said she has eight chickens which she purchased from Tractor Supply in Wadsworth at Easter and added that her children have been raising them since they were chicks and had named them all.
Hinton reached out to her neighbors and residents on surroundings streets and started a petition asking council to update the ordinance to allow chickens to be kept as pets within the city.
“We have a petition online that currently has about 60 signatures and here on paper we have about 40,” she said.
Chestnut Street resident Brad Mason, who also signed the petition, told the committee he has three chickens on his property, but added that he has not received a letter from the city. He said the chickens are kept inside of a coop and he has had them for about 20 weeks.
“I bought them for my daughter as a learning process for her,” he said. “She wanted dogs and cats, but I don’t have time for them. These animals you can give them food and they can pretty much take care of themselves after that.”
Both Hinton and Mason said they have hens only and no roosters.
“I would like to look into why the ordinance was approved in the first place,” said Councilor John Sharkey.
Safety Director Matt Hiscock said the ordinance was put in to place in 1981 – long before his time with the city.
“I can tell you that many suburban communities adopted these types of ordinances once they changed from agricultural societies to suburban societies,” Hiscock said.
“I think this is something we are going to keep on our agenda so we can research it,” Councilor Ralph Copley said.
Hinton asked if she still needed to get rid of her chickens within 15 days of the letter.
Hiscock said that is not up to council or up to him, but added that he would talk to the building inspector and explain the situation. He said he thought there is likely a process where Hinton could be granted a stay until council has made a decision on the ordinance.
First Street resident Maria Hinton recently received a letter from the city stating that she was in violation of a city ordinance by keeping chickens on her property. Hinton said the letter instructed her that she needed to remove the chickens from her property within 15 days.
“I was hoping the city could possibly change the ordinance or update it,” Hinton asked members of the public safety committee June 12.
Hinton said that after doing a little research she has found that some communities have updated their ordinances to allow chickens to be raised within their city limits as pets.
“I own two lots and my lot goes back very deep,” Hinton said. “They say five chickens create as much waste as one dog and you can feed chicken scraps which cuts down on the amount of compost going into landfills. Chickens also eat fleas and other bugs within the yard.”
Hinton said she has eight chickens which she purchased from Tractor Supply in Wadsworth at Easter and added that her children have been raising them since they were chicks and had named them all.
Hinton reached out to her neighbors and residents on surroundings streets and started a petition asking council to update the ordinance to allow chickens to be kept as pets within the city.
“We have a petition online that currently has about 60 signatures and here on paper we have about 40,” she said.
Chestnut Street resident Brad Mason, who also signed the petition, told the committee he has three chickens on his property, but added that he has not received a letter from the city. He said the chickens are kept inside of a coop and he has had them for about 20 weeks.
“I bought them for my daughter as a learning process for her,” he said. “She wanted dogs and cats, but I don’t have time for them. These animals you can give them food and they can pretty much take care of themselves after that.”
Both Hinton and Mason said they have hens only and no roosters.
“I would like to look into why the ordinance was approved in the first place,” said Councilor John Sharkey.
Safety Director Matt Hiscock said the ordinance was put in to place in 1981 – long before his time with the city.
“I can tell you that many suburban communities adopted these types of ordinances once they changed from agricultural societies to suburban societies,” Hiscock said.
“I think this is something we are going to keep on our agenda so we can research it,” Councilor Ralph Copley said.
Hinton asked if she still needed to get rid of her chickens within 15 days of the letter.
Hiscock said that is not up to council or up to him, but added that he would talk to the building inspector and explain the situation. He said he thought there is likely a process where Hinton could be granted a stay until council has made a decision on the ordinance.