Lake Bluff Backyard Chicken Coop Pilot Program Heads To Board

LAKE BLUFF, IL — No Lake Bluff Village Board members opposed plans for backyard beekeeping at a Monday meeting of the Committee of the Whole, but several trustees expressed concerns about also allowing chicken coops in town, Daily North Shore reported.

Village Board President Kathy O'Hara said the Sustainability and Community Enhancement Ad Hoc Committee's suggestion to allow up to 15 permits for chickens or bees was "way too many," according to the website. She suggested five instead.

Trustee Paul Lemieux said he was concerned about the presence of chickens luring predators into town, DNS reported.

“If the coyotes come in and can’t get to the chickens, where else will they show up?" Lemieux was quoted as saying. "I don’t want them doing harm to dogs or cats.”

The co-chair of the committee said restrictions on fencing and requirements for annual renewal of permits would keep the pilot program from becoming a nuisance, according to DNS.

The board will take up the issue again at 7 p.m. on Jan. 8 at Village Hall.

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_{Photos: A chicken coop in Deerfield | Village of Lake Bluff}