Warsaw Resident Expresses Concern With City's Vote To Prohibit Hens In City Limits
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Jennifer Peryam-jperyam@timesuniononline.com
Warsaw resident James Bausch attended Monday night’s Warsaw City Council meeting to express his disappointment with the city’s decision to not allow hens in the city limits. The council voted during its May 19 meeting to prohibit hens in the city limits. The vote was 4 to 3. It was the final vote on the ordinance first discussed Feb. 3. Bausch first proposed in February the city establish an ordinance to allow hens in the city limits. Warsaw Plan Commission provided a favorable recommendation to the city council for the ordinance, and during its April 7 meeting the council could not vote on the ordinance because there were not enough members present to vote. During Monday night’s meeting, Bausch said he attended the meeting to publically express his disappointment not only with the result of the vote, but with the political process that took place. “We, the petitioners, are residents who care deeply about the well being of our community. We are residents who seek to be good neighbors and we are residents who want to respect the ordinances that govern the city,” Bausch said. He said these are reasons he came before the city to have the chicken ban overturned rather than proceed to keep hens regardless of the ban. “It seems to me that the vote was made by the loudest voices in the room and in our community rather than the most informed opinions,” Bausch said. He said he is appalled by what he said was a handful of individuals who swayed the decisions of elected officials instead of advice of professionals who gave a favorable opinion of the allowance of backyard hens including city planners; the Plan Commission who voted unanimously in favor of the ordinance; Teresa Sailor, city storm water coordinator; Nate Bosch, director of Kosciusko Lakes and Streams; the county health department and county extension office through their willingness to educate permit holders; Mike Cox, animal control officer; and Ron Truex, Creighton Brothers. “It amazes me that the city council can ignore these voices and listen to a small percentage of city residents who want to deny law-abiding residents the opportunity to responsibly keep hens,” Bosch said. He said he is aware 80 residents signed a petition against the hen ordinance. “Why can the voices of a select few limit everyone’s freedom?” Bosch said. He said the most dramatic argument made against the hen ordinance was the drastic effect that backyard hens could have on large poultry operations in the county. “Although many counter arguments can be made, I believe the strongest is that not a single employee, manager, attorney, owner or operator of any of our county’s poultry farms appeared before the plan commission or the city council to request that this proposal should be denied due to supposed danger,” Bausch said. “If this was a legitimate reason against people keeping hens either in the city or outside of the city, wouldn’t the state have very specific laws banning the keeping of chickens by ordinary residences?” He asked if there was harm in allowing hens in the city limits why are animals allowed at the fairgrounds? “If these birds are proposing a legitimate problem I suggest the council show the evidence and then ban all pet fowl within the city limits,” Bausch said. He said the argument that the proposal would cost taxpayers to pay for something only a few would participate in is a non-issue.
