SMITHFIELD – Under current town ordinances, chickens are prohibited in the Smithfield city limits. A growing number of people are wanting town leaders to reconsider.
Chickens in backyard cages are becoming popular. Clayton, Garner, Raleigh, Durham and High Point are among the many municipalities enacting ordinances allowing a limited number of chickens for personal use.
Many of the regulations prohibit roosters, limit the number of chickens to 5 or 10, with no commercial uses, have strict waste and health requirements, and rules they must be confined in covered coops. There are also setback requirements from adjacent properties, and minimum lot size requirements. Owners must also obtain permits from town hall.
Smithfield leaders briefly discussed allowing chickens during their October town board meeting. Planning Director Stephen Wensman made a presentation on the benefits of keeping chickens, which he says has become a nationwide trend. Wensman was instructed to gather more information on what other municipalities are doing.
2012 Meeting
In June 2012, the Smithfield Town Council voted unanimously to reject a request to allow chickens in town limits. The board admitted that a number of people already have chicken coops at their homes, but they are illegal, under existing ordinances.
At the same meeting, East Smithfield resident Lucille Washington presented a petition signed by 71 residents opposing chickens. She said Smithfield doesn’t need to become “Chickenville.”
One citizen who supported chickens suggested it could be a good marketing tool for the town, by changing the name of the annual Ham & Yam Festival to the Ham & Yam & Egg Festival.
“We want people to see Smithfield as a nice place to live,” Councilman Charles E. Williams said before voting to reject the proposed 2012 ordinance.
Yes. Government has no business telling what someone can or can’t do on their own property.
I hope you feel the same way about government when it comes to women’s reproductive rights, who someone can marry, etc. I am sure you do since you, like me, want a government that stays out of our lives as much a possible.
The city ordinance banning chickens is not enforced now, this would be a total mess and nearly impossible to enforce going forward. No governing agency wants to deal with the infractions.
There are chickens running all over on North Street by the Johnston Health Medical Mall. Looks like the chickens are not familiar with the city ordinances.
People within city limits still need to eat, do they not? What happens when eggs and chicken become too expensive to buy from grocery stores? This type of control leaves citizens without any way to fend for themselves, and leaves them completely reliant on the government if things go wrong.
Town of Clayton, or so I’ve been told, allows backyard chickens as long as they dont free range. Living in the county, we have chickens and I let them free range during the late afternoons for a few hours just so long as they don’t go eat the neighbor’s flowers again. :p Everyone should have a few chickens…remember when you couldn’t find eggs during covid? And when they came back they were $5 a dozen? Yeah…never again!
Gee, I hope milk doesn’t get expensive.
Me too…because for a minute there it went from $2.99 to $4.19 a gallon, and I have kids who drink A LOT of milk.
#LGB
We need a chicken in every pot
Downtown has an abundance of stray cats. I’ll take chickens. The town doesn’t enforce ordinances unless you file a complaint
yes to the chickens!!
They are great natural/ organic pest control for your property and neighboring properties & help teach the community about where our food comes from! As long as they are kept clean and just girls no roosters, it’s a healthy thing for the community. They are beneficial to the community in various ways and could help with food insecurity as well. Please let us have chickens🙏♥️
Let’s not forget when there was an egg shortage and completely empty shelves at the grocery store!! This is why people want chickens, to help where they can, within their reach. Our country is changing every day and we need to be able to take care of our family when needed, and we can have our neighbors backs as well. Plus we can teach our children how to be self sufficient growing a few vegetables here and there and keeping some chickens for fresh eggs. Also – let’s consider real crime. In this area there are shootings, break ins, assault, rape, etc other violent and dangerous crimes for the police to keep on their radar. (May God bless and protect our Men in Blue who help protect our community and our people and risk their lives many times to do so!)
I think a a few responsibly kept chickens are the absolute least of our problems, if my neighbor wants a few chickens as long they care for them properly, they definitely aren’t hurting anybody and I’m 100% for it and our town leaders should be too. If Clayton, Garner, Raleigh can have chickens under a certain amount, we should too! There are so many benefits when kept sustainably.