PETITION the City of Anderson & the State of INDIANA to allow Backyard Coops/Chickens! 02/28/2023

We the PEOPLE of Anderson Indiana want our Constitutional Right to the PURSUIT of HAPPINESS to STOP being infringed.

Backstory

As of Febuary 28, 2023 I’m learning that my fellow citizens further in the City of Anderson are being restricted from having chickens on their property due to a lack of an ordinance or permission from the Board of Zoning Appeals and/or the Anderson Planning Commission. 

BZA denies variance to keep chickens in Anderson | Local News | heraldbulletin.com

For everyone's information, the Board of Zoning Appeals was lacking a 5th person to vote because Mayor Broderick had not picked someone yet in 2018. There was a vote before I even purchased my current home in 2019. I had to purchase my current home because I was pushed out of the inner city due to the local Needle Exchange Program and 120,000 mini dirty biohazardous containment units a.k.a. dirty needles being lost in Madison County, IN. 

It's currently 2023. There is still an open spot on the BZA.

The City of Anderson has cost me over a hundred thousand dollars over the years. I felt forced to move away from the inner city cause I couldn’t stand watching my city succumb to the WAR on DRUGS. Having the Needle Exchange Program ironically relocated to across the street from me was the icing on my cake or the straw that broke the camel's back. 

Once I learned the Junkie Union of Amsterdam created the idea in the first place then it made sense why the local Needle Exchange Program will never function properly. Our local program is a pick-a-part version of the original DUTCH N.E.P. that allows their citizens safer options for treatment and includes Cannabis a.k.a. Marijuana. Without Cannabis the N.E.P. in Indiana will never work properly. The DUTCH N.E.P. is the world’s oldest program and is still functioning properly many years later. 

I helped get the local N.E.P. defunded in 2017 because it lost 120,000 dirty needles in my community. In 2018 the N.E.P. was relocated across from my old home on Meridian St. (Ground ZERO). The same day the N.E.P. was being discussed again, I found another dirty needle in my yard. 

I had to make a decision on June 05, 2018. I had to decide if I was going to stand and fight the program or regroup and relocate. I chose to deliver the dirty bio-hazardous containment unit a.k.a. a dirty needle to Stephanie Grimes during the Commissioners Meeting with a packed house in front of the new crews. Then I chose to relocate to my current HOME that I have dubbed the Spring Hill Growstead 2019. 

I chose to relocate on June 05, 2019, which happens to be my return home from a war zone date after being away from America for almost 2 years. I just happened to purchase a property that would land me into the biggest complex Real Estate case of Squatter’s Rights I have ever experienced. The Squatter just happened to be a politician and won a seat on the local Anderson Community School Board, and cost me upwards of a hundred thousand dollars to defend myself from his false accusations for 2 years. 

I had to say all the above to get to where I wanna go with the storyline. It’s like which came first the chicken or the egg. That seems to be the ultimate question in the history books. But one thing I do know is chickens are descended from dinosaurs, and I LOVE being a mini dinosaur keeper. My coop truly makes me HAPPY. I don’t like any of my rights or happiness being infringed. 

Today, February 28, 2023, I learned that I don’t have any protections for my property or my backyard chickens which concerns me greatly. I should not have to be concerned about anyone trying to take my chickens' past, present, or future. Fearing a food shortage or another pandemic experience or a local ordinance prohibiting me from trying to survive in America or the lack thereof is the worst feeling I’ve felt in a while. 

I currently have emotional support chickens in my backyard. Once again I’m learning that my Constitutional Right to the PURSUIT of HAPPINESS is seriously being infringed by the same city I sacrificed my time for when I joined the Army. The same military service that left me 100% Unemployable due to service-connected injuries. I personally have to come up with ways to live self-sustainably regardless of the post-pandemic economy. It’s hard for me to understand why anyone would infringe on someone else's rights.

All of the above is my aspect. Let’s face the reality of the food scare that has hit America in the past couple of years. American Citizens should be allowed to have access to all kinds of food sources. To deny us any part of that is unethical and immoral regardless of the reasoning. 

I get that there are irresponsible pet owners out there 

or people who cock fight in Anderson, Indiana. 

In fact, a house across the street from me on Rangeline Rd was in the news 2021 for dog/cock fighting. I understand the need for rules on the subject matter of backyard chicken coops and keepers.  I am fully aware of every aspect a person can throw at me on the subject matter cause I was born and raised in Anderson, Indiana. We are like a melting pot of subcultures within a main culture. 

Link: Anderson dog fighting arrest: James Lee Peterson charged (fox59.com)

Refusing to rezone something that is needed for survival in the community is heartbreaking to me. The fact we are debating the chicken topic is very frustrating to me because there are so many things we could be doing if we already had laws established. Responsible Chicken owners should not be restricted because of the actions of others who do things such as cock fighting in the city limits. I shouldn’t have to surrender any of my constitutional rights or be forced to get a permit to have emotional support chickens that happen to produce food. 

I happen to be the owner of multiple roosters. It happened by accident because it’s really hard to tell if a chick is male or female until they are several months old. There are signs supposedly that differentiate them, but some of the signs are old wives' tales. However, I have learned a lot from having multiple roosters in my flock. The main gist is that roosters are capable of being contained and humanely submitted without hurting them. I also have learned and believe they need to be contained within the city limits to be fair to surrounding neighbors unless neighbors have given permission to free roam. (STATE Law requires them to be contained)

FACT, We have a food desert in Anderson, Indiana. We just went through a pandemic that hit the Nation so hard that some people may or may not ever come back financially. We the people need access to basic necessities for our survival. Especially when the people in charge of making decisions are willing to hand out free needles with drug cooking kits, but won’t let the taxpayers have chickens in their backyard for the means of survival or emotional support.

The decisions being made locally are from different departments, but it’s all in the Government tree that supposedly helps run the City of Anderson. The proper role of government according to the U.S. Constitution and the Indiana Constitution is to protect the liberty of the people. Liberty of the people is being eroded, particularly property rights.

The issue of animal ownership is that it’s more than a simple question of preference. During my own personal property dispute and the pandemic in Anderson, if my family had not had chickens then my family members might have been short on food at times. I’ve come to the conclusion that our own property rights on our property need to be supreme.

Let’s NOT focus on the problem. Let’s focus on multiple solutions. 

02/28/2023 I created a group called the Anderson Indiana Chicken Ordinance | Facebook. It’s a simple group name and anyone should be able to find it unless Facebook restricts the group algorithms. Either way, it’s there for people to find, join, or interact with people about the Backyard Chicken Coop Ordinance debate in Anderson, Indiana. 

OUR current mission is to petition the city to change the local ordinances to allow backyard chickens in the inner city without a permit or without restricting our basic survival needs or Constitutional Right to the pursuit of Happiness.

AND/OR Prevent cities from adopting ordinances banning backyard chickens in the State of Indiana. 

Please sign our petition to update local ordinances and petition the State of Indiana to prevent cities from adopting ordinances banning chickens.

Thanks in advance,

11th Generation American & Disgruntled Combat Veteran

Nicole (Schuyler) Kapuscinski 

Chicken - The closest living relative to the dinosaur! - YouTube