Batavia To Resume Debate On Backyard Chickens
BATAVIA, Ill. (CBS) -- Aldermen in west suburban Batavia will reopen discussion on whether raising backyard chickens for fresh eggs should be a permitted use within the town's limits.
Residents began lobbying last year for the city to relax its existing city code to permit the raising of urban chickens. Proponents said the fresh eggs from a backyard chicken flock taste better and are more nutritious.
The city broke off discussions in August because it was in the midst of finalizing the second bridge decision and developing the 2011 budget.
Now it's ready to pick up the chicken debate again.
Ald. Jim Volk, chairman of the City Council City Services Committee, said the committee will have a review on Feb. 1 of where it left off earlier.
"I envision in March we will have public input," Volk said.
Volk said if the committee decides that it wants to go forward in allowing residents to raise chickens, by April the city would draft an ordinance for the council to consider in May or June.
Volk said the city has received mixed reviews on the subject of chickens.
Some residents have expressed concerns about noise, smell and vermin, while others like the idea of getting fresh eggs out of the backyard.
Two Batavia residents gave a presentation last August on the merits of raising backyard chickens for fresh eggs. Betsy Zinser and Jennifer Warta said raising small flocks of hens for families has become increasingly popular across the suburban landscape.
The women came with a group of proponents asking for a zoning change that would allow for up to eight laying hens and no roosters and prohibit the slaughtering of chickens. They suggested restrictions that include having the hens contained in coops and runs at least 20 feet from the nearest neighbor.
The City of Chicago already permits raising hens in backyards, as long as they are penned or in a coop. West Dundee, Evanston, Oak Park, Northbrook, Arlington Heights and Kendall County now allow the raising of chickens, but the idea laid an egg in Wheeling, Palatine and Park Ridge.
Urban chicken-raising has taken off in recent years, as the local food movement has gained traction.
The Web site UrbanChickens.org points out that while anyone can grow fresh fruits and vegetables in his or her backyard, but "when it comes to supplying your own source of protein however, it's impossible to get your dog to lay breakfast each morning or fit a cow in your backyard."
"That's why chickens are so wonderful!" the Web site says. "They are small, easy to care for, and won't take up your entire yard. Chickens provide protein rich eggs, and if you choose to you can also raise them for meat (if slaughtering is legal where you live)."
They also provide fertilizer and natural pest control, the Web site points out.
UrbanChickens.org encourages people to join the local food movement and raise chickens so they can "take pride in being a producer and not just a consumer."
But others argue that "relocalization" of food production will be mandated in the coming years, as the cheap energy supply declines permanently after the point of "peak oil," and transporting food over long distances becomes increasingly difficult.
The Aurora Beacon-News contributed to this report, via the Sun-Times Media Wire
