Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

One chicken per 1000 square feet okayed in La Mesa

Art Madrid and the rooster on Maryland Avenue notwithstanding

The La Mesa City Council voted 4-1 on March 25 to amend the municipal code and allow people to keep domestic fowl such as chickens in single-family residential zones. Roosters are prohibited, and councilmembers called for a one-year review of the issue.

Mayor Art Madrid voted against the zoning change, saying, "There's more to it than having a nice chicken that lays eggs." Madrid said his concerns included "appeasing one segment of the population…. This is an urban community."

The council made some changes to the zoning change recommended by the planning commission on February 19. Commissioners recommended allowing one bird per 2000 square feet of lot area, with a maximum of 20 fowl. The council raised the amount to two birds per 2000 square feet in this city where the average lot size is 6000 square feet. The council also added a requirement that enclosures (coops) are covered to protect birds.

Before the vote, councilman Mark Arapostathis asked about regulations related to potbellied pigs.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Community development director Bill Chopyk said that two potbellied pigs are allowed.

The pigs are permitted on a lot that is 6000 square feet or larger. Also allowed on lots that size are two dogs and from two to 10 cats. According to a city report, the number of adult felines may be increased "if those cats exceeding the first two are spayed or neutered."

The city permitted 20 fowl on 15,000-square-foot lots, a designation removed when the amendment was approved.

Vice mayor Kristine Alessio said some residents kept chickens illegally and asked how many complaints the city received. Chopyk said the city code-enforcement officer was investigating a complaint from two days earlier about a rooster on Maryland Avenue. He said the city received less than 10 chicken complaints during the previous six months.

During the hearing, resident Heidi Grettenberger spoke about her legal chickens. She said her chickens are quiet and that a bird may lay one egg a day. "They may squawk to let us know they have an egg. Our neighbors love us because we share our eggs with them."

Arapostathis asked what happened after birds stop producing eggs. Grettenberger said some people eat the birds. "We have children," she said. "We haven't faced that yet."

Complaints caused elementary school-age siblings Addie and Ellie Tweet to relocate their chickens and rally for the amendment. "I used to have chickens, and I really want them back," said Addie.

Rex Smith said his neighbor's chickens drew flies to his house.

Virginia Rodriguez said that the presence of chickens at two nearby homes attracted "predators" to her Lemon Avenue neighborhood. Rodriguez said predators "got" neighbors' chickens and killed a neighbor's dog.

"We lived in our house for 48 years, and we never saw a coyote in our yard until the chickens came. This is not a sweet little farming community; we're an urban neighborhood. When people have chickens in Lakeside, they protect their chickens with guns."

Madrid raised issues such as the whether the presence of chickens would discourage people from moving to La Mesa.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Gonzo Report: Three nights of Mission Bayfest bring bliss

“This is a top-notch production.”
Next Article

Wild Wild Wets, Todo Mundo, Creepy Creeps, Laura Cantrell, Graham Nancarrow

Rock, Latin reggae, and country music in Little Italy, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Harbor Island

The La Mesa City Council voted 4-1 on March 25 to amend the municipal code and allow people to keep domestic fowl such as chickens in single-family residential zones. Roosters are prohibited, and councilmembers called for a one-year review of the issue.

Mayor Art Madrid voted against the zoning change, saying, "There's more to it than having a nice chicken that lays eggs." Madrid said his concerns included "appeasing one segment of the population…. This is an urban community."

The council made some changes to the zoning change recommended by the planning commission on February 19. Commissioners recommended allowing one bird per 2000 square feet of lot area, with a maximum of 20 fowl. The council raised the amount to two birds per 2000 square feet in this city where the average lot size is 6000 square feet. The council also added a requirement that enclosures (coops) are covered to protect birds.

Before the vote, councilman Mark Arapostathis asked about regulations related to potbellied pigs.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Community development director Bill Chopyk said that two potbellied pigs are allowed.

The pigs are permitted on a lot that is 6000 square feet or larger. Also allowed on lots that size are two dogs and from two to 10 cats. According to a city report, the number of adult felines may be increased "if those cats exceeding the first two are spayed or neutered."

The city permitted 20 fowl on 15,000-square-foot lots, a designation removed when the amendment was approved.

Vice mayor Kristine Alessio said some residents kept chickens illegally and asked how many complaints the city received. Chopyk said the city code-enforcement officer was investigating a complaint from two days earlier about a rooster on Maryland Avenue. He said the city received less than 10 chicken complaints during the previous six months.

During the hearing, resident Heidi Grettenberger spoke about her legal chickens. She said her chickens are quiet and that a bird may lay one egg a day. "They may squawk to let us know they have an egg. Our neighbors love us because we share our eggs with them."

Arapostathis asked what happened after birds stop producing eggs. Grettenberger said some people eat the birds. "We have children," she said. "We haven't faced that yet."

Complaints caused elementary school-age siblings Addie and Ellie Tweet to relocate their chickens and rally for the amendment. "I used to have chickens, and I really want them back," said Addie.

Rex Smith said his neighbor's chickens drew flies to his house.

Virginia Rodriguez said that the presence of chickens at two nearby homes attracted "predators" to her Lemon Avenue neighborhood. Rodriguez said predators "got" neighbors' chickens and killed a neighbor's dog.

"We lived in our house for 48 years, and we never saw a coyote in our yard until the chickens came. This is not a sweet little farming community; we're an urban neighborhood. When people have chickens in Lakeside, they protect their chickens with guns."

Madrid raised issues such as the whether the presence of chickens would discourage people from moving to La Mesa.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The Fellini of Clairemont High

When gang showers were standard for gym class
Next Article

Temperature inversions bring smoggy weather, "ankle biters" still biting

Near-new moon will lead to a dark Halloween
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader