Playing chicken with the city

Jan 31 2008

MARIO BARTEL/NEWSLEADER Hayden and infinity Perry visit their chickens in the backyard of their New Westminster home. Their father, Dan, has been told the chickens have to go, as their coop contravenes a city bylaw. By Michael McQuillan A New Westminster family’s feathers are ruffled after receiving a city hall order to get rid of their flock of chickens. Bylaw officers told Dan Perry and his family two weeks ago they had to get rid of the six chickens living in a backyard chicken coop. The hens, the officers said, don’t comply with the public health bylaw. The bylaw allows chickens, but only if the property is at least 6,000 square feet, the coop 50 feet from the nearest dwelling, and health and sanitation requirements are met. The Perrys’ Sapperton property is only 5,000 square feet and the coop and home are just 30 feet apart. Perry says the city bylaw, written in 1967, is antiquated and needs to be revised. The chickens, all egg-laying hens, are a constant source of education for the Perrys’ two children, as well as for kids in the neighbourhood, he added. “Living in the city, we’re pretty much separated from our food. This is a great way for kids to learn,” said Perry. Having hens also has environmental spinoffs. Manure from the chickens is used in a compost to produce rich soil for the family’s vegetable garden. And instead of being thrown in the garbage, table scraps become feed for the hens. As well, having a regular supply of organic eggs means a healthier food supply for the Perrys and neighbours, compared to store-bought eggs. At the time the New West bylaw was created, the focus was large properties, mostly in Queensborough. Many of the regulations pertain to health and sanitation conditions of these farms. But New Westminster city staff insist the bylaw regulations are still valid. “Some of the issues with the keeping of chickens are they are an attractor and generator of rat problems,” said Keith Coueffin, the city’s manager of licencing and enforcement. “The other issues with them are smell, flies and noise—particularly roosters when they start crowing early in the morning.” “In my experience, if there were chickens there was a high probability of a rat problem.” Perry disagrees. He says rats are more often attracted to human garbage than they are to a chicken coop. He also says like everything, it depends upon how well someone takes responsibility for their property; Perry cleans the hen house daily. The conflict between urban chickens and city bylaws is not new. Many North American cities have been part of the debate. Last week in Halifax, a woman was ordered to get rid of her three hens because a neighbour complained they were attracting rats. But on Monday, the Maritime city gave the woman a temporary reprieve while its no-chicken bylaw was reviewed. In Seattle, each household can keep three chickens. The city even educates prospective backyard farmers on fowl fundamentals. Michael Levenston with City Farmer in Vancouver says dogs can create more of a mess and noise than chickens do. But he also knows henkeepers have to keep their coops clean—or they’re inviting problems. “From our point of view, in a perfect world we’d love to see people get fresh eggs, be able to have the manure and be able to use the leftovers from the dinner table eaten by something that is productive,” said Levenston, executive director for the urban farming advocacy group. “Some people take the positive view on city chickens,” he said. “Then others say it’s like going back to the dark ages. But today we’d like to have more of the country and the farm in the city. That’s what’s motivating a lot of people.” As for Dan Perry and his family, they’ve been given another six weeks to shut down their coop. Meantime, Perry says he’ll lobby city councillors to take a fresh look at the old bylaw. mmcquillan@burnabynewsleader.com