07-15-2015, 09:05 AM
I've had one friend who kept chickens with the acceptance of all her immediate neighbours, until one day some years later when a more distant neighbour called in bylaw. Now, she keeps quail, which is legal. The eggs are also apparently edible, though obviously you need a few more of them.
The situation at the coop next to Mount Hope is pretty similar. No problems for years, good relationship with neighbours, and then bylaw descends claiming noise and smell. Which is... imaginative, considering I'd walked by that location many, many times before I ever realized there were chickens there and I've never smelled or heard them.
Don't get me wrong: bylaw enforcement is just doing their job. I see no problem with that. However, these incidents are strong evidence that a well run coop does not place any hardship on anyone except the neighbourhood fussbucket, and that a blanket ban is an unjustified limitation on our freedom. The current bylaw should be replaced with one which regulates coops instead of banning them.
The situation at the coop next to Mount Hope is pretty similar. No problems for years, good relationship with neighbours, and then bylaw descends claiming noise and smell. Which is... imaginative, considering I'd walked by that location many, many times before I ever realized there were chickens there and I've never smelled or heard them.
Don't get me wrong: bylaw enforcement is just doing their job. I see no problem with that. However, these incidents are strong evidence that a well run coop does not place any hardship on anyone except the neighbourhood fussbucket, and that a blanket ban is an unjustified limitation on our freedom. The current bylaw should be replaced with one which regulates coops instead of banning them.