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Ordinance committee continues public hearing on backyard hens, schedules further review after planning board processing
Summary
The committee heard multiple residents and advocates in favor of allowing backyard hens, continued the hearing to June 16 to await a planning-board review and written communications from city departments, and asked staff to add prior draft ordinance materials to the public packet.
The Ordinance Committee on May 21 opened a public hearing and heard extended testimony from residents urging the city to allow backyard hens. The committee continued the public hearing to Monday, June 16, to incorporate planning‑board review and joint department input.
Speakers from neighborhoods and community groups described backyard hens as a source of nutritious food, composting benefits, and educational opportunities for children. Christine Burnham said she has kept hens on Rock Valley Road for about 10 years and urged the committee not to delay: "A few hens require very little space... It's actually very beneficial to have hens in your property eating ticks, taking care of pests, and dethatching your lawn for free." Youth and family speakers, including Mega Hernandez and Libby Hernandez (both residents of 245 Walnut Street), stressed sustainability and food-security benefits.
Former ordinance committee member Rebecca Lisi said advocates had prepared a draft ordinance previously but that high start-up fees had made past proposals prohibitive for lower-income residents. "We had turnkey legislation that was broadly supported by the last ordinance committee," Lisi said, noting concerns about fee levels that could exclude those with food-insecurity needs.
Planning staff and other departments were not present in person; the chair said health had submitted a memo to be entered into the record and the planning board would take the issue up at its next meeting. Mimi Panich, identified as a planning-board representative, told the committee the planning board will hold a public hearing on the topic the following Tuesday and invited advocates to attend.
The committee asked city staff to place prior draft legislation, planning-board documents, and any memos from the Board of Health and animal control in the packet for the June 16 meeting. The committee made clear it would read the planning board recommendation and department communications before further deliberation.
Ending: The public hearing remains open and was continued to June 16 at 6:30 p.m.; the committee directed staff to include prior draft ordinances and recent department communications in the packet so members and the public can review them before the next session.
