Week 9 Reflection

A couple weeks ago I read through most of this week's readings while preparing the first draft of the urban agriculture analysis that I'm working on, but I am glad I took the time over the break to reread them. I think I now have a better grasp on some of the concepts surrounding urban agriculture and the role of planners, and I was able to recognize some overlooked issues in my research. 

I found the discussion of the land inventories that were carried out in Portland, OR and Vancouver, BC to be really interesting, particularly in terms of using the process of a land inventory to engage communities and raise awareness about urban agriculture and the various dimensions of its benefits (social, health, environmental, economic, etc.) in a way that increases public participation. Mendes et al. found that Portland's case had a stronger element of this community engagement and public participation than Vancouver's land inventory process which was described as more of an "inside job" which was carried out on a smaller scale (Mendes, et al. 2008). It seems like the success of Portland's urban agriculture initiatives is in no small part a result of public/community support. The city of Portland has been committed to sustainability for decades, and many of the residents embrace this. I think that for urban agriculture and other, broader sustainability initiatives to be successful (or even attempted) in any city it really helps for strong public support to already exist, and if this support is not there, it may be an issue with too little advocacy for these initiatives and programs. What seems promising about land inventories, besides being a useful tool to identify land for urban agriculture, is that it can also be done in a way that raises awareness and engages communities to build support for future initiatives and move forward from the land inventories to put urban agriculture programs into action.

I also found Dr. Butler's paper on urban livestock to be very helpful in terms of my research project. I have been looking into the animal ordinances of various municipalities in Florida, and was somewhat surprised by how restricted such activities are in most places. I've been concentrating mostly on backyard chickens, and I think growing up in Tallahassee gave me the impression that keeping chickens in residential neighborhoods is generally allowed. I have had many friends who have at some point kept a small flock of hens and occasionally a rooster at their homes. In many of the Florida cities I've looked at, backyard chickens are highly restricted or not allowed at all. I found that a few cities have temporary pilot-programs offering a small number of permits to interested residents to test out the viability of keeping chickens within city limits. Orlando set up a pilot-program for chickens in 2012 in which 25 temporary permits were approved to keep up to three chickens (no roosters allowed) with requirements to meet certain standards for chicken coops and to attend a class with the University of Florida/IFAS agriculture extension office on chicken care (City of Orlando, 2013). In Tallahassee, although there are setback requirements, there is no specified limit to flock size and there are no permitting requirements such as attending a class. 

Personally, I am in favor of fewer restrictions on keeping chickens, but I respect the need for standards and regulations to protect the health of both the people and the animals. I think that offering classes through county extension offices and other organizations on caring for livestock in an urban setting, either as a requirement for a permit or just as an optional resource, could be an effective way to integrate livestock into the urban environment while mitigating public health and animal welfare concerns. 

Orlando Urban Chicken Pilot Program Update 2013