The squawking is over for this year on a proposed chicken ordinance in the city of Racine, but it’s not a dead issue. Alderman Greg Helding has taken grief over his communication to consider an ordinance allowing a few chickens for personal egg production but says there’s clearly more work to do before he’ll take it up again.
Helding says he’s met with the city health director and discussed potential workloads that could be increased as a result of a chicken ordinance. The alderman told a local group supporting chickens that hard work has resulted in similar ordinances being approved in other communities.
Helding says this is humorous to some, but supporters believe it’s a very serious property rights issue.
“At at the same I sympathize with people who don’t want to have problems next to their house, even something as simple as dog ownership can run afoul.”
The Racine Council’s Committee of the Whole agreed to basically defer the issue until it’s raised again next June.
Laws allowing for urban chickens have been met with mixed results statewide with Madison cited as a model for supporters, while other communities are hatching plans to allow the birds.
Tom Karkow-WRJN