A few thoughts after a very eventful week in which the Glendale city council unanimously accepted the Canvass of Votes thereby acknowledging Mayor Weiers, Vice Mayor Hugh, Councilmember Malnar and me as winners of the recent election. It’s over.
Courtesy of Dawn Monaghan
The photo below is from the September 13, 2016 city council meeting. The gentleman kneeling is Bill Toops, publisher of the Glendale Star. After the Glendale Star did not endorse me or my rival I had a conversation with Mr. Toops. He stated that in the event that I won, he would publicly acknowledge my victory.
Every Friday I check out home sales in Glendale. There are about 350 sales a month and about 4500 sales a year. Some sales obviously reflect existent residents either moving up to a larger home or downsizing but the majority are new families moving into Glendale from someplace else. Is it any wonder that voter turnout is so low in Glendale? One of the reasons for voter apathy is the city’s failure to educate and to engage these new residents.
It came as no surprise that the contested election results were so close. Look at the Jones-Biggs contest in Congressional District 5. It appears to be a reflection of a national trend as general analysis suggests that the presidential contest will be close. Remember the hanging chad? Will there be another Florida-type situation this year? Electronic voting will be under tremendous scrutiny because of concerns about hacking into the national voting system. I’m not sure the country is prepared to deal with electronic voting and assuring the public that the results are tamper proof. Perhaps we would be best served to continue the use of paper ballots that at least leave a trail that can be verified.
Social media has grown up and is a legitimate and extremely useful in connecting to voters. With my shoe string campaign budget I know that my use of a blog, Facebook pages, blast emails and a campaign website were extremely important and may have tipped the scales in my favor. Today any candidate who does not make full use of social media does so at his or her peril.
I will continue to blog about Glendale issues as I am not a formal member of the city council yet. The installation for mayor and councilmember is scheduled for December 13, 2016. After then I will continue to blog but I will make very clear that as a councilmember I am duty bound to support council decisions on issues but that will not preclude me from expressing my personal opinion. I will be sure to delineate those positions to readers.
Look for an announcement concerning an October victory celebration for Mayor Weiers, Vice Mayor Hugh, Councilmember Malnar and me. I will share the details of the event as they become available.
© Joyce Clark, 2016
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Ms. Clark:
It is interesting to note the reference to the movement of individuals into and out of Glendale. There is a current issue under discussion by Council that could affect how prospective residents view Glendale. I am referring to the proposed Zoning Text Amendment whereby, if approved would allow the keeping/raising of chicken on properties zoned RI-10 thru RI-4. (Smaller sized single family residences.)
While I understand you are not our Councilperson yet, it is obvious you will be. During the campaign you promoted yourself as the champion for the average citizen and indicated your decisions would be based on the overall good of the community. Now I’m curious as to your position on keeping/raising chickens in residential areas of the City.
I will share some interesting numbers with you from the Planning Department. There are currently 2, 959 parcels allowing the keeping/raising of chicken in the city. If approved the proposed Zoning Text Amendment change would ADD 43,721 parcels. Wake up folks.
Jack Martino
Jack, There are people who passionately oppose and support allowing chickens in all residential districts. You want me to take a position without having all the facts. I am not privy to staff reports nor have I contacted other cities in the Valley that do allow chickens…do they allow in all zoning districts? Do they set limits on the number? Do they have statistics on how many residences have chickens…on what type of zoning parcel? What is the record of complaints? All of this is information that would be provided in a staff report (I hope). Yes, I will champion the average citizen but I hear from both camps these days. I suspect it is an issue that will be decided by council before I come on board. I would hope the council asks the very same questions I raised in my response to you.
Thanks, Joyce
Congratulations Joyce, I know you worked very hard to win the Yucca seat back!
I wasn’t going to bring up any of the chicken issues since we are hoping this will get resolved prior to you taking your seat on the council. This item was brought as a request by me at the June 23, 2015 council meeting. It was made an item of special interest at the August 4, 2015 meeting by council member Turner. Staff researched and brought to council their findings on which cities allow backyard chickens in the Phoenix Metro area in a workshop on January 19, 2016. At that time council instructed staff to work on making an ordinance change for all residential housing. HOWEVER, this will not impact anyone that lives in an HOA that has CC & R’s that prohibit fowl, this will not impact apartments or multi unit housing or retirement communities (although I think they would love to have chickens visit as they provide a sort of therapy). The Planning Department had a neighborhood meeting on August 17 and there was a Planning Commission workshop on September 1. There are pros and cons, however, residents need to understand that only a limited or reasonable number of chickens are being considered. Staff originally said it would be unlimited, but have since recanted and said only a reasonable number. Also, chickens would not be considered household pets, but probably in the line of exotic pets.
I’m not sure how many families that currently reside in Glendale are part of the chicken underground, but I can promise you there are a lot of people who currently have chickens in Glendale in R1 residential housing. They even have turkeys, pigs and goats. This request is only for chickens….if someone else wants to add goats, pigs or whatever they can fight that battle.
Locally the cities of Gilbert, Mesa, Peoria, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tempe allow chickens. Why is Glendale behind the sustainability movement? Each city has their own restrictions on numbers allowed, offsets of coops from neighbors etc. This is not a new movement, but a growing movement.
Nationwide here are a few examples of cities that allow the keeping and raising of chickens on residential lots: Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, Ventura, San Francisco, Pasadena, Nashville, Fort Worth, Austin, Chicago, New York City (yes that New York City) and these are just to name a few. This is not a new idea as more and more families are trying to provide for themselves.
I hope this provides you with a bit more insight. Feel free to contact me if you wish to have additional information, but I’m sure you can find anything the city has done regarding this issue on their website. Have a great day!
September 21, 2016
Greetings Folks:
There are some items here that need to be clarified.
Ms. Honn was keeping/raising chickens in her backyard in VIOLATION of the City of Glendale Zoning Ordinances. That is fact.
The statement she makes that this proposed zoning change will not affect Homeowner Association CC&R’s is not entirely correct. If the governing documents do not specifically identify chickens as such, there is potential for a challenge.
There has never been any doubt that the proposed change would only be applicable to single family residences RI-10 thru RI-4. The zoning change as presented at this time has no setback requirements, coop design/specification, “reasonable number of chickens” or specifics of that nature .Don‘t worry about these things, they will be dealt with later. Be careful here.
A statement is made that the raising of chickens in residential areas zoned RI are quite prevalent. Is that an indication that the Code Compliance staff is not enforcing the zoning ordinances currently in place?
Simply because you can site different cities that allow chickens, you have to be a little careful. Setbacks, coop design/size and even lot size may become part of the equation. Understand, chickens are currently allowed to be kept /raised on 2,959 parcels within the City of Glendale. The proposed Zoning Text Amendment if approved would increase the total to 46,680 parcels or an increase of 43,721. Convince me that would be in the best interest of the majority and increase my property value.
By the way the current ordinances have been on the books since 1993 (33 years) and were reviewed in 2011 with the conclusion they were consistent with public policy and did not require any modification at that time in2011.
We will have to agree to disagree on this issue. Chickens do not belong in residential areas of the City.
Jack Martino
City of Phoenix readily has info in their code compliance section on backyard chickens. Interestingly, residents of City of Phoenix do not seem to have objections or concerns about chickens affecting the “good of the community.” One could make an argument that backyard chickens ARE for the good of the community. Before one goes down the erroneous “slippery slope” that all 43,000 rezoned parcels would want to raise chickens, keep in mind, HOA regs also factor into this. Having said this, a reasonable, unbiased person might consider that chickens ARE for the “good” of the community. They can provide healthy egg protein for low income families, provide healthier alternatives for families interested in raising organic, sustainable food products including gardening. Do your research. Chickens eat insects, INCLUDING mosquito larvae. The fear mongering regarding salmonella poisoning has been grossly overblown. How many cases of salmonella poisoning have you heard of in Phoenix for backyard chickens? Call the Phoenix hospitals and get stat reports on that one. Turtles, lizards, and other reptiles also can transmit salmonella; therefore, should those pets be banned, too? The planning and zoning commission, as well as City Council, must fairly and accurately investigate and consider all positions, rather than fall prey to fear tactics and uninformed or erroneous information. Certainly there can be limits, policies, and oversight put into place, as reasonable, to ensure chickens are raised in a safe and healthy manner, both for the owners and the public at large.
Dr. Jodi mentions chickens provide healthy egg protein for low income families. Could you explain the financial cost for the thirty chickens dumped at the Saguaro Ranch Park by novice farmers and the tab to feed these chickens for one month for the City of Glendale was $500. City of Glendale decided to search out volunteers to continue caring for the chickens which became a short lived commitment, then the city removed the chickens from the site. So, with this documented cost for thirty chickens, how do low income people afford to raise chickens? I can spend $30 a month for eggs that are certified by the American Humane for free range chickens, FDA supported, inspected by expert husbandry quality control inspectors, and raised in a environment with PER HEN 21.8 sq. ft. outdoor ranging space. Glendale’s ordinance will allow “reasonable” interpret that to mean 12 to 25 chickens housed in a unrestricted chicken coop the size of a pantry or linen closet with a 4ft by 4 ft. patch of dirt ground to scratch off their lice and mites.
Who am I? I am the EXPERT on living next door to chickens. I am the neighbor of the person, Shelly Honn, championed by CM Bart Turner to bring this ordinance request before the City Council two weeks after I filed a complaint with city code of compliance. Commission board member, Gary Hirsch, does not want the Glendale public to know the next door neighbor to the person petitioning for this chicken ordinance, filed three police reports and had encountered six code compliance visits dealing with the chicken issue. My lived experience marks the base line for the social problem other neighborhoods will encounter as well. I love the testimonies when backyard chicken people bring forth their neighbor who supports their chicken life. I know these people, for I was one of them, “a peace at any price”, people pleaser, easier to smile and support than confront. Inside, we live with the hidden truth, we really wish our yard, our patio and our home did not have to support the flies, the rats, the chicken stench, and wild birds searching for chicken feed and the loss of our fruits to the wild birds. Yet, this peace at any price is what we give to live in harmony.
DR. Decker comments , “The fear mongering regarding salmonella poisoning has been grossly overblown.”
CDC gave an official report on Sept. 21, 2016, there is a 50% increase across the ENTIRE COUNTRY for salmonella outbreak and their investigation led to the cause from backyard chickens. This ethical and transparent CDC organization is non partisan, has no bias or hidden agenda, they only deal with facts.
So Dr. Decker, to your comment ” a reasonable, unbiased person might consider that chickens ARE for the “good” of the community.” Would you consider the CDC investigation to be a reasonable and unbiased report?