WATERVILLE — The push to change the city’s rules on backyard chicken ownership and slaughter is continuing.
Waterville resident Leo St. Peter is urging officials to revise ordinances that set minimum square‑footage requirements for keeping chickens and that prohibit slaughter within city limits. St. Peter, who keeps chickens on his 46‑acre property, told the Planning Board last month that he believes it is unconstitutional for residents on smaller lots to be barred from raising chickens in the same way he can on his land.
Maine’s “Right to Food” amendment, approved by voters in 2021, establishes a constitutional right for residents to grow and raise food. The amendment states that “all individuals have a natural, inherent and unalienable right to food, including the right to save and exchange seeds and the right to grow, raise, harvest, produce, and consume the food of their own choosing.”
St. Peter argues that Waterville’s regulations unconstitutionally restrict who may raise food. He points to an ongoing case in Calais, where a couple are suing the town for the right to keep 19 chickens on their quarter‑acre lot, as an example of residents elsewhere challenging municipal limits.
Waterville’s current rules require a minimum lot size of 8,000 square feet, allow no more than six chickens per household and set specific setback and coop requirements. The city also bans raising meat birds and prohibits slaughter within city limits.
St. Peter said the city’s minimum‑lot requirement is overly restrictive and prevents many residents from exercising what he views as a constitutional right to raise food. He contends that about 40% of Waterville properties fall below the 8,000‑square‑foot threshold, leaving a significant share of households unable to keep chickens or raise other food.
St. Peter said it is difficult for buyers to know whether chicks will grow into egg‑laying hens or birds typically raised for meat. Thus, most orders include at least one meat bird by mistake, he said.
St. Peter noted that under current rules, city residents have no practical way to deal with an unwanted meat bird because slaughter is banned, keeping it is illegal and selling it is not allowed. He questioned what realistic options people have when a chick they did not intend to raise for meat ends up in their flock.
Planning Board members raised health and safety concerns for residents and the chickens, questioning whether reducing the minimum lot size or setback requirements could increase the risk of disease transmission.
Board members also raised concerns about chickens ingesting lead paint and then passing that contamination to families through eggs.
A board member said he had spoken with a veterinarian who recommended increasing the limit from six chickens to 10 to 12 so more birds are likely to survive the winter.
St. Peter has begun offering a class on how to care for chickens, and some board members said completing such a course should be required for ownership.
St. Peter disagreed, saying people are not required to take a class before having children.
The Feb. 24 Planning Board discussion was intended to produce a recommendation for the City Council, but members were unable to reach an agreement.
St. Peter said he is undeterred and plans to continue bringing the issue before the city.
