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WINDSOR LOCKS — Putting their spin on an old riddle, officials in town aren't pondering why the chicken crossed the road. But they do continue to question how often the birds might navigate the municipality's thoroughfares.
Chicken owners, many of whom have been waiting for a resolution to this debate for nearly a year, will have to wait a bit longer for new rules about keeping poultry on their properties now that a resident's proposed ordinance failed to get officials' approval Monday.
The Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously voted against an amended ordinance proposed by resident MaryAnn Moskey that would have changed the regulation of enclosures for poultry, rabbits, and similar small animals to be at least 25 feet from neighboring properties, rather than the previously required 100 feet.
Moskey worked with the town's current regulation and said she just changed the distance that coops could be from neighboring properties. She kept the current requirement that chicken enclosures be 75 feet from the street and the animals are not allowed to wander onto adjacent properties. Her proposed amendment also included the current rules that roosters are prohibited and poultry products cannot be sold to the public.
The PZC, however, did not find her amended ordinance to be complete enough and is planning to hold a workshop during a special meeting soon to discuss what would best suit the town insofar as a new regulation.
"The initial regulation offers a base for what needs to be done," PZC member Alan Gammuscio said, who advised denying Moskey's proposed amendment, adding that in the future, the PZC should discuss what needs to be incorporated into the regulation.
Moskey, who has been advocating for months that the town update its rules that date back to the 1980s for keeping domestic livestock, worked closely with Town Planner Jennifer Valentino and residents to draft the new ordinance.
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After the decision on Monday, Moskey said the version that PZC members ultimately decide upon could be better than what the town rules say now or could be worse.
Moskey said her worst fear would be that PZC members tighten up the regulations to a 50-foot setback for coops from neighboring properties.
"Twenty-five feet is better than what we have now, but even that isn't good enough," she said about her proposed amendment.
Had she known about how few properties in Windsor Locks are in compliance for keeping chicken under current regulations, Moskey said she would have proposed 10 feet from other properties instead of 25.
"There are 9,000 residences in town that are less than a third of an acre," Moskey said about the current regulations that allow keeping poultry on residential properties. "I didn't know at first how many people keep chickens but there are a lot and the majority of them need to be on properties that are at least a half acre."
Moskey said in her application for the updated zoning regulation that the change will let more families produce fresher, more nutrient-rich eggs, and allow domestic poultry to be kept as pets, show birds, 4-H, and vocational agriculture projects, and be raised to preserve heritage breeds in danger of extinction.
"More sustainable living would be achieved by providing bug control, nutrient-rich fertilizer, and by poultry consuming food scraps, leaves, and grass," she wrote.
The issue has long been discussed at PZC and Zoning Board of Appeals meetings by residents who keep chickens on their properties.
Last winter, resident Heather Nicholson received a letter from the town requesting voluntary compliance of the zoning ordinance after a neighbor complained about her chickens wandering onto other properties.
Nicholson appealed the request for voluntary compliance to the Zoning Board of Appeals but lost.
Since then, a number of residents who also have chickens have been attending meetings to ask for rules that would allow more residents to keep on their properties.