I am a St. Joseph resident. My pedigree here is as long as any family in the 'over 100 years category.' I had 7 chickens in a cedar sided coop on my property. We thought the chickens were within the ordinance because they were over 200 feet from the nearest residence (not as the crow flies but almost (198 feet)). Our neighbors loved these chickens and everyone enjoyed congregating around the the garden fence to watch the chickens in their run. Sometimes I would see several people leaning on the fence just watching the birds. Runners, kayakers even the AEP guys stopped and enjoyed.
However, when St. Joe decided to bar vehicular access to an access road on the side of our property they determined the 'road to no where' was a public way and the chickens were too close. Needless to say the chickens were evicted and now live with a friend on her organic farm in Benton Township. You can not imagine how many people have stopped and asked about the chickens. Not that many people have the ability to keep chickens but most people like to see them when they are in a safe, humane coop and run.
I am a Registered Dietitian and have spent a great deal of time studying the problem of poor childhood nutrition and the effect of food deserts on the nutritional health of urban communities. I have taught nutrition and culinary arts to children for many years and these chickens were a part of an educational program I was developing to alleviate the serious problem of food access in urban areas. A curriculum designed combining inexpensive, sustainable urban agriculture is very exciting and incredibly relevant in these difficult economic times. It is also relevant in our community as supported by the rise in applications to food related social programs.
I hope the Commission will re-evaluate their preconceived ideas regarding poultry. We have the most up to date poultry research at our finger tips at Michigan State University. Both the Extension and the Poultry Research Farm can quickly alleviate fears about vermin and other public health risks connected to keeping small urban poultry flocks (there are very few and these can be eradicated by hand washing). The Michigan Department of Agriculture is also helpful and is supporting urban poultry initiatives across the State of Michigan.
I was so pleased to see Audrey's article in the Herald Palladium. I am also pleased to hear how respectfully the Commission is treating her. I hope they are ready to listen to hard evidence and not speculation. We are all residents and voters. I hope they are opened minded enough to look beyond preconceived notions and see where the country is going. This is not a conservative verses liberal idea. It's a good idea. There are many ordinances our city should address to meet the needs of people living in the present day and not 20 or 50 years ago. We all have to live together respectfully. In addition I hope we do not marginalize the ideas of people living outside our community. I would like people considering moving to St. Joe to think of us as a welcoming community not an 'our way or the highway' community. I also think we should reflect on the reasons people are choosing to leave St. Joe or who have left St. Joe for surrounding communities.
(Obviously I could address the dogs verses chickens debate and the rats drinking from planters and eating from bird feeders debate but I think it is obvious this issue is not about facts it's about fear. Education is the key.)
Thank you Audrey. Thank you St. Joseph for supporting a forward thinking resident and allowing a fair and open debate.
