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Town of Union hears public concerns on backyard poultry, considers catering for home occupations
Summary
At its Feb. 5 meeting the Town Board held public hearings on proposed code changes including backyard poultry and home-based catering. A resident opposed allowing chickens; town attorney said poultry would be limited to rural lots and enforcement would be fines only.
The Town Board of the Town of Union on Feb. 5 held public hearings on several proposed code changes, including rules for keeping poultry, home occupations and other technical amendments to town code.
During the hearing on the proposed amendment to Town Code Chapter 300-40.10 (Keeping of Livestock and Poultry), Jackie Stemler of Beatrice Lane, Endwell said she opposed allowing backyard chickens. Stemler raised multiple concerns, saying many residents are “uneducated on the proper care to maintain the chickens,” worried about odors and asked how the town would handle noncompliance and disease risks such as avian influenza.
Town Attorney Alan Pope responded that the proposal under discussion would limit poultry to more rural residential lots (the board discussed allowing residents with an acre or two) and described enforcement as civil fines through Town Court. Pope said that Town Court’s remedies are limited and that the town would need to seek relief in the Supreme Court to force removal of animals, noting that "all they can do is give fines." No formal vote or code change was taken at the meeting.
On home-occupation rules under Town Code Section 300-40.9, resident Dylan Echols asked the board to add "catering" to the list of permitted home occupations. Pope said the draft ordinance modernizes some occupation labels and would allow catering as a home occupation only if it excludes outdoor food preparation (for example, smokers and barbecues). He added that home catering operations "shall require a food permit from the health department" and that the county recommended notifying the Broome County Health Department in addition to any town approvals.
The board also opened and immediately closed hearings on proposed changes to snow-emergency parking (Ch. 178-11), bidding/buying rules (Best Value and piggybacking, Ch. 77) and the town's renewable energy systems chapter (Ch. 161) after no public comment on those items.
Next steps: the public-record hearings allowed the board to collect feedback; the transcript records discussion and comments but does not show any final ordinance adoptions at this meeting.
