May 19, 2016 2 min read

Should chickens be allowed to roost in Monongahela?

The city’s planning commission will hold a public hearing next week on an amendment to the zoning ordinance to allow the raising of a limited number of chickens (no roosters) within the city limits.

Michelle Parnell complained after Monongahela’s code enforcer ordered chickens off her property in January because the current ordinance allows livestock only on farms. City officials noted Pittsburgh allows chickens, but they should also recall this is not the first time the issue has arisen in Washington County.

Nearly two years ago, a Venetia family was grated permission to keep its three chickens on its .3-acre lot despite Peters Township’s ordinance at the time prohibiting livestock on property less than 10 acres. At that time, this newspaper flocked to the defense of the Lucas family, and it’s worth repeating what we wrote at that time:

“Miniature chicken ranches have been hatching all over suburbia lately. But it’s fresh eggs their owners appreciate more than the companionship of their feathered friends. Some neighbors might not give a flock, but others crow about the pounding poultry will deliver to property values.

“Critics should quit their squawking. As long as the pets are exclusively hens and not noisy roosters, and provided that the chickens are not free to roam the neighborhood, they are less of a nuisance than some other more traditional pets. Free-range dogs, for instance.

“Chickens do not bark or bite. They do not chase cars, dig holes, terrorize mail carriers, urinate on rose bushes or leave piles of feces on other people’s lawns.

“If you can allow sleeping dogs to lie, let the chickens lay.”