Urban Chicken

Last week, after eating at Caritas Village and looking at their community gardens, a friend of mine pointed out a house in VECA with what looked like a number of chicken coops in the backyard.

I know of someone in Uptown that raises chickens, and a few months ago, I posted evidence of free-range chicken in East Memphis, too.

But what about downtown?

The Winston-Salem Journal had a story last week about how, in the age of "eating locally," city officials in downtown Greensboro has loosened regulations on raising chickens.



From that story:

"Earlier this year, [Amy] Williams and her boyfriend, Brian Talbert, found themselves fighting for the right to keep chickens. They also found themselves in the midst of a growing trend across North Carolina -- city dwellers who are taking "eating locally" beyond their vegetable gardens and farmers' markets by building coops and enjoying eggs from their backyard flocks. ...

In August, Talbert and Williams' efforts persuaded Greensboro city officials to loosen the ordinance covering backyard chickens and bees. Property owners with as little as 7,000 square feet of land can have hens -- as long as the coops are 25 feet from the property line and 50 feet from a neighbor's house. Roosters are banned. But chickens will lay eggs without the help of their male counterparts; they just won't be fertilized."

It's really an interesting story, with a lot of arguments for and against home-grown chicks, and it's an issue that may become more common with the economic situation. Of course, I don't know exactly what the laws are here ... I'm assuming it's against code ... but if I find out, I'll let you know.