Who are we?
River City Chickens is an informal group of citizens who support responsible hen care in urban environments. People in cities around the world enjoy keeping hens right in their own backyards, including in North American cities like Victoria, Vancouver, Guelph, Niagara Falls, Brampton, Seattle, New York, LA, Portland, Madison, Houston, and Red Deer. Small backyard flocks can play a positive and sustainable role in the urban landscape.
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Our history.
In February of 2010, we requested the City's permission to conduct a year-long pilot project to study the experiences of residents keeping hens in their backyards; the data compiled was used to help the City evaluate the benefits of permitting hens on a city-wide basis. In August, 2010 we received a letter from a City official, advising us that "decisions regarding requests and proposals for exemptions to the Animal Licensing and Control Bylaw should be postponed until they can be evaluated in the context of the upcoming work to develop the City-wide food and agriculture strategy." On November 14, 2012 the City of Edmonton approved a Food and Urban Agriculture Strategy: fresh. A recommendation was that City examine opportunities for citizens to keep bees and raise hens, including that it "partner with local non-profits to assist in the evaluation of the implications of allowing urban backyard hens. City staff to report findings to City Council."
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