By Steve Bell
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kcur/local-kcur-977713.mp3
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Kansas City city council passed a backyard chickens ordinance yesterday, and seemed to have fun doing it.
At least fifteen chicken jokes were cracked at Thursday's council session, and even serious comments stayed on the light side-- for example, when Melba Curls.talked about her grandmother's wandering chickens.
Curls recounted,"Every now and then they'd get out and walk around in the street and they'd remove these chickens from the road. I mean I don't want people to get hurt or anyone to get hurt or put their brakes on trying to avoid a chicken."
Her story prompted one more ad lib from ayor Sly James to qupip, "You mean like the chicken crossed the road?"
The ordinance as passed lets residents keep up to fifteen chickens closer than the existing limit of 100 feet from neighbors' houses if those neighbors will sign off on it and the neighborhood association doesn't forbid it.
he chickens must be penned up, and persons getting the waivers are subject to inspections and any nuisance complaints such as about noise, odors or wandering chickens. It also specifies no egg sales on site.