After sending out 4 questions to all of our Winfield Trustees, here is the response from Debra Piscola.  

Early voting has begun. The question of allowing back yard chickens is on the ballot. Please get out and vote and encourage others to do the same! It will take all of us to vote yes for the Village to see the desire from our community.

Good Afternoon,

I am well and hope the same for you and your family. Thank you very much for the continued outreach regarding the raising of poultry in Winfield. I recognize that much like I have done my best to educate myself on the raising of chickens in a suburban environment, you are doing your best to educate yourself on who to vote for in the upcoming municipal elections. I applaud your efforts to educate yourself and to be an informed voter.

 My answers to your questions are below.  I am more than happy to meet in person if you would like to discuss my responses in greater detail. I am also happy to meet with a larger group of advocates if you think that would be helpful.

1. After hearing from residents both for and against allowing back yard chickens in Winfield, are you in support of residents owning backyard chickens? Please explain why or why not.

I am in favor of allowing back yard chickens with set back and screening requirements. I have listened to both those in favor of and against the raising of chickens in Winfield and have done my best to educate myself. I think there are pros and cons on both sides and I think the middle ground is the set back and screening requirements. The Village Board hasn’t fully discussed the set-back and screening requirements and as a result I can’t provide you with what those requirements might be at this time.  

2. Do you feel that the interests of all Winfield residents are currently being represented on the Village Board of Trustees? If not, how will you work to represent marginalized residents?

I would like to think that the interests of all Winfield residents are currently being represented and recognize that we can always do better.
My understanding of marginalized residents are those residents who experience discrimination and exclusion based on their race, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status or other characteristics that create barriers to education, employment, healthcare and housing. As a Village Trustee my goal is to be welcoming to the viewpoints of all residents, reach out to residents to ensure that I have heard their voices and educate myself to better understand issues that are before me. I will not take the interests of one group over the other simply because of their race, gender, sexual orientation or socio-economic status. I was elected to represent all residents, and I take that role very seriously. 

3. How do you plan to balance your personal feelings about any given issue, the impact of the issue on the Village, and public opinion on an issue?

I sought to be elected to the Village Board because I wanted to help the Village continue to grow and develop. I didn’t want the Village to be stagnant and wanted to create more opportunities for businesses to relocate to Winfield, create more amenities for residents and ensure that the Village was in a good fiscal position. Those are personal feelings; however, I think doing so will have a positive impact on the Village. We have certainly heard from residents that they are enjoying the prospect of new restaurants, the 10 music nights held over the last 2 years were largely attended and the new Amazon facility has created additional revenue for the village via sales taxes. As a Trustee, I think it is important to be open and transparent to ensure that residents fully understand my thoughts on a position.
I recognize that there may be an instance where my personal feelings run counter to what is best for the Village. For instance, in only my second board meeting, a resident sought a code variance for his home that was being rebuilt after a devastating fire. I wanted to help the resident out and provide him with the variance; however, doing so would have been detrimental to the Village. I voted to decline the variance. To this day, it is one of the hardest votes I have taken.

4. How do you plan to or how have you informed yourself or researched the topic of backyard chickens to make an informed decision? If you have any concerns or reservations what are they? 

I have spent a lot of time researching the raising of poultry in a suburban environment. I have read the material you forwarded and read articles from Chicago Magazine (A Step-by-Step Guide to Raising Chickens), visited websites such as Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts, Urban Hen House, City Cast Chicago (How to Keep Chickens in your Backyard), among others. I read ordinances from those communities that permit the raising of chickens in DuPage County.  I can still learn more and still plan on visiting Klein Creek Farm to see first hand the raising of chickens.
I do have reservations about the raising of backyard chickens. I mostly discounted the Avian Flu until DuPage County sent out a notice regarding the dangers of the Avian Flu. I watched a news report about a chicken farmer who was taking enormous steps to keep his flock free of the disease and I read with dismay about the loss of the Kakadoodle Farm flock earlier this year. I can no longer discount the impact of the Avian Flu and its impact on both domestic and wild fowl. I am concerned about the potential of encroachment of wildlife such as coyotes and foxes, though I think that can be mitigated by a well-built chicken coop. Finally, I am concerned about the smell and will visit either Klein Creek or a backyard flock to determine if there is an issue.
Thank you again for the outreach. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or need additional information.
I hope you have a great weekend.

Deb Piscola
Village Trustee