Chicken Keeping Victory: Salem, MA

Despite the complaints of neighbors, the Salem, MA zoning board ruled in favor of a family and their 5 pet hens. Tom Dalton, at The Salem News Online reported on the story. Link to full article. This case is interesting, in that neighbors complained but no nuisance was found. Instead, the building inspector said that keeping chickens was an agricultural use, which was not permitted in that residential area. The zoning board however ruled that it was not in fact an agricultural use, as they were not selling any eggs or chickens. In this case the 5 chickens were seen as egg laying pets. Yet another victory for backyard chicken keepers, but it brings up some key issues in the chicken debate. In some cities, such as NYC, there is no limit on hens and the selling of eggs is seen as a viable form of community economic development. It appears that their program is successful, and it allows for another local product that can be sold at farmers markets. In many cities however, chickens are considered to be pets that produce for the family only and their eggs are not viewed as a viable market product. This line between urban agriculture and pet chicken keeping is a very interesting one to examine, and it is brought up in many debates about urban chicken keeping. As the local food movement continues to grow and people are looking even closer to home for their food supply, this issue will continue to be discussed.