West Frankfort considers allowing backyard chickens amid rising egg prices

WEST FRANKFORT, Ill., (KBSI) – As egg prices continue to rise, residents in West Frankfort are looking for a solution that hits closer to home — raising their own chickens. The discussion over allowing backyard hens within city limits has made its way to Mayor Timothy Arview, who is now working on a proposed ordinance.

Tina Rose, a resident of West Frankfort, believes residents should be allowed to raise chickens, especially in a small, rural town like hers.

“I don’t see why there should be any issues,” Rose said. “You don’t have to have roosters to get eggs, so maybe they could limit roosters for the noise. But beyond that, people should be able to have a few chickens in their yard if they want.”

Concerns have been raised over the potential spread of bird flu, but Rose said that with proper care and city regulations in place, she doesn’t believe it would be a major issue.

“Infestations usually happen in bigger areas where people don’t keep things clean,” she said. “I think the biggest issue wouldn’t be the residents — it would come from code enforcement.”

Mayor Arview said he’s been gathering public input over the past two months. After creating a social media poll, which garnered 110 responses leaning heavily in favor, he began drafting an ordinance based on regulations from similar towns in Illinois.

“Citizens mentioned on Facebook that, with the price of eggs, they wanted to have hens in town,” Arview said. “Our ordinance currently doesn’t allow that, so they asked for an amendment. I looked at how other towns worded theirs.”

He referenced Carbondale as one example of a Southern Illinois town with an existing ordinance allowing backyard chickens.

“I don’t know how long Carbondale has had that ordinance, but I modeled ours on theirs and others around the state,” he said.

The mayor plans to present the ordinance to the City Council on April 22. A decision is expected following that meeting.