HomeMy WebLinkAboutSCMinutes_2013_08_09Sustainability Council
August 9, 2013
A meeting of the Sustainability Council was held at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, August 9, 2013 at
Brookings City & County Government Center with the following members present: Norma Nusz
Chandler, Brooke Sydow, Donna Hess, Bob McGrath, Ben Kleinjan, Alvaro Garcia, Paul Peterson
and Betty Beer. Absent: Arika Sanders, Jane Hegland and Ryan Carda. Others present included:
Jamison Lamp, Kimberly Elenkiwich, Meghan Thoreau, Holly Tilton Byrne from Dakota Rural
Action, Mike Struck, Shari Thornes and Laurie Carruthers.
Nusz Chandler called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m. A motion was made by Garcia,
seconded by McGrath to approve the agenda. All present voted yes; motion carried. A motion
was made by McGrath, seconded by Garcia, to approve the July 11, 2013 minutes. All present
voted yes; motion carried.
Meeting Schedule. Next meeting will be scheduled after a review of new schedules for the fall
semester.
Storm Sewer Art Project. 2013 Leadership Brookings Class members Jamison Lamp, Kimberly
Elenkiwich, Craig Ammann, Karyn Moen and Deb Springman researched storm drain art for
their class project. Lamp and Elenkiwich presented to the Sustainability Council. The goals for
storm drain art include: heightened awareness to the storm drainage system, educating the
community on how storm drains work, targeting high traffic areas, and city beautification
through art. The Leadership Brookings team has drafted a 319 federal mini-grant proposal and
proposes a demo art project start at the southeast corner of Kiddoodle Way and 4th Street, with
a hope to have more along this high traffic area. They have met with the City Engineer,
Community Development Director and City Clerk and hope to have a committee take over the
implementation of this project. The project would entail: submission of the grant proposal,
marketing/promotion, call for artists, prep and paint storm drains and create a media buzz.
Other cities have done this including: Springfield, MO; Fayetteville, AR; Baltimore, MD and
Newport, OR. Beer commented that the artists should not be asked to provide pro bono work;
they should be paid. Additionally, there should be a screening process for the quality of the art.
Lamp advised the grant would only cover the cost of the supplies, not an artist and agreed a
screening process should be in place. Corporate sponsorships could be obtained for the artist’s
fees. Peterson asked if the coating for the artwork had been tested in the elements of weather
similar to South Dakota’s. Lamp advised that before anything would be done, this would need
to be checked. No action was taken.
Electric Car Charging Station Subcommittee. At the June 14, 2013 Sustainability Council
meeting the electric car charging station possibility was discussed. A subcommittee needed to
be formed to research this topic further. Beer and Peterson volunteered to be on the
subcommittee. Carruthers suggested Carda, who was absent, and will follow-up with him.
Bike Rental Discussion. Garcia observed bike rentals in New York City and asked the topic be
discussed. A student organization attempted to do this on campus, but it was unsuccessful.
McGrath advised that the University of Minnesota has a similar program, but it is privately
owned and the bike rental stations are just outside the campus boundaries. Beer spoke with
Robb Rassmussen from Sioux River Bicycles & Fitness and he provided some informational
materials. Holly Tilton Byrne from Dakota Rural Action advised that DRA would be interested in
collaborating on this effort. Garcia volunteered to meet with DRA to look at this issue further.
Urban Chicken Coops. The chicken coop subcommittee met on July 31, 2013 and provided
their recommendation to the Sustainability Council that an ordinance be adopted in the animal
control section of the Brookings Codified Laws and a definition regarding agriculture be
amended in the zoning laws to allow chickens with the following restrictions: maximum of 6
chickens; no roosters; minimum of 40 feet from adjacent residents; any runs attached to the
chicken coop must be enclosed; coops and attached runs must be portable - no permanent
structures should be built; a license or registration will be required for tracking purposes
(similar to dogs); no inspection program unless complaints received; compost piles that contain
chicken waste matter shall be located at least 40 feet from all property lines and be within a
container or bin enclosed on all sides and covered to deter rodents, flies and other pests; all
chicken feed shall be kept in metal or other rodent proof containers; harvesting shall be done in
a humane and sanitary manner and shall not occur in view from any public area or any adjacent
property owned by another; and chickens and their eggs are for personal use only, no sales
allowed.
A few members were not present at the meeting, and wanted their opinions documented.
Hegland and Sanders are in support of urban chickens coops. Carda had the following
concerns:
Property values - I personally would reconsider a home purchase if the
next door neighbor had a chicken coop in the backyard. At the very least,
I would offer less than the asking price based on the presence of a
chicken coop alone. I have a strong feeling that the majority of Brookings
residents would feel the same way. This will only serve to lower property
values in such areas. The issue with this is the fact that it will affect more
than just the homeowner that chooses to have a chicken coop. It will
also affect their neighbors.
Disease - Salmonella is always a concern with chicken coops. I heard a
recent news article on the radio about salmonella issues from urban
chicken coops: http://now.msn.com/chicken-salmonella-outbreaks-
linked-to-backyard-and-urban-coops. Here’s a CDC article about it as
well: http://www.cdc.gov/features/salmonellapoultry/.
While it is true that most people know and assume that chickens carry
salmonella, you won’t always be able to control who comes in contact
with the animals. As discussed in the CDC article (link above), salmonella
is especially dangerous for young children. If a small child happens to
come into contact with a chicken coop, it could pose a serious health risk
for that child. Supervised or not, it seems to me that a chicken coop
within city limits would always pose as a health risk, especially to young
children.
Cleanliness - This point ties directly in with property values and risk for
disease. There is no quantifiable way to measure the cleanliness of a
coop. Enforcement of this part of the ordinance will always be
subjective.
Chickens are considered to be a farm animal for many reasons and the
farm is where they belong. I think the majority of Brookings residents
would feel the same way.
Beer raised concerns regarding air contamination and children under 5 years of age handling
chickens. Members discussed the 40 feet guideline and if it was required from the property line
or the neighbor’s house and asked for clarification in the recommendation. Garcia suggested
adding the chicken owners obtain eighty percent of the neighbor’s approval before acquiring
chickens. McGrath advised that he would abstain from voting on this issue because he has
done business with Meghan Thoreau related to farming.
Community Development Director Mike Struck advised that the Planning Commission at their
August 6, 2013 meeting had directed staff to write a letter to the City Council advising to not
change the current zoning ordinance regarding agricultural and R1 districts concerning chicken
coops. McGrath and Citizen Meghan Thoreau questioned how this was voted on because City
Planning & Zoning Administrator advised at the July 31, 2013 chicken coop subcommittee
meeting that no action would be taken at the August 6, 2013 Planning Commission Meeting.
Struck advised that the Planning Commission concluded that it was not in the best interest to
wait on this issue.
Kleinjan suggested that the neighbor approval provision be removed because this would just
start neighborhood conflicts. He said that if it becomes an issue of noise, this can be dealt with
in the noise ordinance.
Holly Tilton Byrne from Dakota Rural Action pointed out that 5 of the 7 comparable or similar
cities from the research allow urban chickens. Thoreau advised that if the requirement is a 40
feet set back from the dwelling, it will not necessarily be ideal to locate the coop in the center
of a backyard, and she suggested 25 feet. She also requested an exception for properties with
alley access.
At 9:37 a.m. Garcia and Sydow left the meeting. At 9:56 a.m. Beer left the meeting.
The Sustainability Council agreed to change the recommendation from “40 feet from adjacent
residents” to “25 feet from adjacent dwellings.” They would revise the recommendation and
take action at the September meeting.
Plain Green Conference. Carruthers advised that the registration deadline is approaching and
she would need confirmation from the attendees. She also noted a new registration policy. If
you are registered an unable to attend you will be responsible for the fees barring unforeseen
circumstances.
Indicator Project. Nusz-Chandler provided an update on the Indicator Project. The GIS
research is almost complete and 17 indicators are left. 45 indicators are in various stages of
complete.
Public Education Campaign. Carruthers advised that Eric Landwehr is working with the
participants and shooting the photos. She also reminded members to turn in their facts.
Thornes advised the City would complete a fact check before finalizing the posters.
Announcements Correspondence/Communications/Calendar
• September 13, 2013 – Plain Green in Sioux Falls
• Membership: Members’ terms were staggered with one, two and three terms when the
Council was created on September 15, 2011. Terms for Beer, Hess and Sanders expire on
12/31/13. All are eligible for a full three year term.
• Restoration window workshop – Thornes introduced a topic for the September agenda. The
Historic Preservation Commission is commissioning Bob Yapp to perform restoration
window workshops. They would like to partner with the Sustainability Council to center the
workshops around Earth Day and energy efficiency. She will present more at the
September meeting.
Draft September Agenda: Action on urban chicken coop recommendation, Bob Yapp
restoration window workshops, electric car charging station sub-committee, Indicator Project
update, Plain Green, public education initiative, and year-to-date financials.
Meeting adjourned at 10:25 a.m.
Submitted by Laurie Carruthers