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Swansea latest southern Illinois city to allow chickens

Posted January 02, 2017 6:00 am

The Associated Press

SWANSEA, Ill. (AP) - The southern Illinois city of Swansea is the latest in the region to allow residents to raise chickens in their backyards.

The Belleville News Democrat reports (http://bit.ly/2hKUmC9 ) that Swansea village leaders recently voted unanimously to allow chickens in neighborhoods that are zoned residential. That's different than four years ago when the village board rejected a similar plan. Swansea trustee Brian Wells says "people want to know what's in their food."

Swansea Mayor Ken Mueller says his family raised chickens when he was a child. He reminds possible backyard chicken keepers that "chickens don't lay eggs forever." Experts say after egg production drops owners need to decide if they'll keep, harvest or sell the birds.

Other Illinois communities near St. Louis that allow backyard chickens include Collinsville and Fairview Heights.

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Information from: Belleville News-Democrat, http://www.bnd.com

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