One month has passed since San Juan Bautista made feeding feral
fowl illegal and though the city has yet to issue a citation, many
local residents report fewer chickens afoot in the Mission
City.
San Juan Bautista – One month has passed since San Juan Bautista made feeding feral fowl illegal and though the city has yet to issue a citation, many local residents report fewer chickens afoot in the Mission City.
“You used to see bands of chickens roaming the streets, sometimes one would even come into the store and hide in the corner,” said Diane Perazzo, owner of Bluebird Antiques and Collectibles.
While the new ordinance does not specify a penalty for chicken sympathizers who see fit to share lunch with their feathered friends, the San Juan municipal code mandates that the first infraction would constitute a fine of $50, and a second within 12 months would cost $100, with an additional fine of $500 for every infraction thereafter. The ordinance was passed in late March after years of debate at city council meetings. Council members determined an ordinance would be a good place to start addressing frequent complaints about the mess and noise caused by the chickens.
In order to pay their debt to society, however, the chicken feeder would have to be caught, and San Benito County Sheriff Curtis Hill has made it clear his department will not assume the role of poultry police. The only other office capable of enforcing the ordinance would be the city’s code enforcer, a position San Juan contracts out. Calling out the code enforcer would likely cost more than the fine.
“If somebody had received a ticket for chicken feeding, I would have heard about it by now,” said San Juan Bautista city council member Chuck Geiger.
Regardless of whether the ordinance is enforceable or not, there are noticeably fewer chickens clucking along Third Street.
The thinning numbers may also be attributed in part to the efforts of San Juan’s chicken-catching brigade, headed by resident Dan Vermilyer who estimates that he and his fellow chicken-nabbers – primarily high school students with some free time after school – have caught and relocated around 80 chickens over the past few months with the use of oversized fishing nets and a little strategy.
Even if Mission City residents choose to cease and desist their chicken-feeding efforts, many are skeptical.
“All I know is I saw a proud looking rooster at the post office the other day, and he had four hens with him,” said Geiger. “And I thought ‘Wow, what a great life.’ ”
