Mark Webber | The Republic Shanon Pittman and Herby Asher participate in discussions during their first meeting as members of the Hope Town Council.
HOPE – Hope has reaffirmed its ban on chickens within the town limits by a 4-1 vote.
The town has a differing viewpoint than Columbus, which went through a lengthy debate on keeping chickens in their backyards in 2016, eventually allowing residents to have as many as four chickens in backyard coops.
But Hope town council members were not dissuaded by the argument that Hope town residents should have the same option as Columbus residents.
Council member Herby Asher made the motion to leave Hope’s current ban on chickens as it is. It was approved 4-1. Only at-large councilwoman Shanon Pittman was in favor of lifting the ban on backyard chickens.
Linda Foote, who lives on Aiken Street in Hope, brought up the point about Columbus, when presenting a petition with 212 signatures requesting chickens be allowed in Hope backyards. Hope’s current population is about 2,100 residents.
In June, Hope Town Marshal Matt Tallent told the council that Foote’s neighbor had made a complaint about the 22 chickens she maintains in her backyard that is on the edge of the town limits. Tallent said Foote was told she had to rehome her chickens within 30 days.
But after Foote outlined what she feels are benefits such as fresher eggs and a means of feeding the poor, the town council gave her a 30-day moratorium on rehoming the birds. Town manager Jason Eckart was asked to research Ordinance 31-2016 in Columbus regarding chickens within the city limits and report his findings back to the council.
On Tuesday, Eckart told the council that if they wanted to adopt an ordinance that mirrors the one in Columbus, he would have town attorney Scott Andrews write an initial draft.
But when council president Ohmer Miller asked for discussion, the council was quiet for a few moments until member John Walstad spoke up.
“I just think we’d be opening up a whole can of worms,” Walstad said. “Next, it’s going to be horses, Then, it’s going to be cows.”
Miller said that he already has a skunk on his property.
His remark harkens back to Hope’s mandatory trash pickup ordinance approved in 2016. Although it ran into strong public opposition, council members said it was necessary for public health because exposed garbage attracts potentially dangerous animals ranging from rodents to skunks and coyotes.
Concern has been expressed by some Hope residents that the waste generated by chicken in backyards would bring back the same health and safety concerns to the town.
