Alex Martinko echoed his mother Katherine Martinko’s pro-urban chicken stance, proudly hoisting his hand drawn poster that read, “I want chickens in my backyard,” during the April 24 Committee of the Whole meeting.

Hub Staff

A proposal for poultry in urban areas was hatched once again during the April 24, Committee of the Whole meeting. The two-year pilot program draft by-law was approved in principle by a vote of 2-6 with final approval expected in May.

During the Open Forum, Saugeen Shores resident Katherine Martinko, backed by a few friends and her enthusiastic son Alex, spoke in favour of the two-year pilot project.

“I can speak to my own generation, we are young people that are increasingly interested in the sources of our food, we want a connection, we want relationships with our food... we want to know some of the ethics that have gone into the production, we want to know what those hens are eating, we want to know where they come from.” Martinko added that it was a great way to teach children responsibility and spoke of the need of rules and regulation.

Martinko didn't think that Town Staff would run into problems as chickens lack exoticism and requiring a coop and fences will discourage people who are not as serious about it.

During the Committee of a Whole session Councillor Dave Myette announced a pecuniary interest by way of a financial matter and left council chambers while talks and the vote took place.

Town of Saugeen Shores Development Coordinator Jay Pausner delivered a Poultry in Urban Areas report that furthered talks held during the March 20 Planning Committee. Featured by-law requirements included:

• No person shall keep, at any one time, more than 5 hens at a property
• The property on which the hens are located is 1000 m2 or greater
• Hens can only be located in the rear yard, as defined in the Town’s 
Zoning By-law
• All permitted hens shall be kept in a fully enclosed coop or run in a manner that contains the hens on the property and prevents their escape from such coop or run.
• Coops and any run shall be setback a minimum of 1.5 m from side and rear lot lines and a minimum of 5 metres from any dwelling unit, excluding the dwelling unit on the property on which the hens are located.
• Coops and runs are maintained in a clean condition
• Coops are deep cleaned at least two times per year including disinfection of troughs, perches and nests
• Coop floors are lined with shavings, straw or other appropriate materials
to absorb manure and facilitate cleaning
• Manure and droppings are cleaned out daily and stored in a secured
container until disposed of in accordance with all applicable laws and
regulations
• Deceased hens are disposed within 24 hours of death at a livestock
disposal facility, through the services of a veterinarian, or through a facility approved by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and are disposed of in accordance with all other applicable laws and regulations

Prohibited rules include: no roosters, no sale of eggs, meat, or by-product of hens, and manure, and no slaughtering or butchering of hens.

Councillor Neil Menage believed that “best practices” were not included in the by-law and put forth an amendment that ultimately did not pass. Included in the proposed amendment was the pre-inspections of coops by a by-law officer, or qualified delegate, which would then allow the homeowner to successfully be listed to the registry, as approved for use. Menage also requested that hens have a wing clipped to avoid negative scenarios that could arise from a hen escaping.

Councillor Mike Myatt was an opposing force during the meeting. The councillor said that he had spoken to over 100 people who oppose hens in an urban setting. Although speaking highly of Katherine Martinko, Myatt believed that not every hen owner would be a good caretaker. “What about those other chicken raisers that don’t do a good job in backyards,” he asked, while also worrying about neighbourly disputes.

Myatt brought up H5N2 avian influenza and listed recent outbreaks; two in 2015 at a turkey farm in Woodstock, with the second taking place in Oxford County at a broiler breeder chicken farm. In 2016, 14,000 farm ducks were killed after contracting H5N2 in St. Catharines. Myatt reminded that all animals infected and in contact had to be euthanized.

“I’m concerned about our by-law enforcement officer spending too much time enforcing the by-law.” He continued, “I don’t think anyone around this table wants to explore the day that a household cat or dog is attacked by a fox or a wild animal trying to access a hen house. Call it scare tactics, call it what you wish but there is a serious side to this,” said the councillor.
He then referred to the by-law’s size restrictions, requiring lots be 1000 m2 or greater. He said if the town was serious about passing a poultry by-law, “open it up, what are we afraid of,” while then saying that the size requirement is eliminating many Saugeen Shores residents, and that the two-year pilot project won’t get an accurate analysis from a limited amount of people.

Councillor Rich, who not only supports urban poultry but was the one who brought it to Council in the fall of 2016, continued to defend his stance and said that “change is good.”

“All I'm looking at is running a two-year pilot to let a few families in this community raise a few hens... Katherine Martinko made several arguments this evening as to why that’s a good thing do to,” said Rich.

Deputy Mayor Luke Charbonneau reminded councillors and those in attendance that if the by-law is approved during the Committee of the Whole, it would still need to be finalized at an upcoming Council meeting and until that time staff could reintroduce new ideas and different amendments.

During the voting process Mayor Mike Smith and Councillor Mike Myatt were the two votes against.

Following the Committee of the Whole, Mayor Smith said chickens are “probably not the best things in a urban setting,” adding that a challenge might come in two year’s time if Council decided to stop allowing urban poultry. “What position it’s going to put our by-law enforcement officer in... who finds a violation and says ’you gotta get rid of those chickens’... it’s not a good situation for anybody when you have to do that.”

Katherine Martinko during the April 24 Open Forum in council chambers.