Hello--
I live in Lacey, WA. My city ordinances (since 2008) allow for urban-farming practices, including raising small livestock. I have 10 hens that have become an intimate, integral part of my emerging backyard "food forest." I am currently deployed (Army), and my HOA just served my wife a letter asking us to remove our chickens. After all the work/money I've invested, this literally kept me awake most of the night after hearing of the notification, and has me pretty bummed out (I think about it fairly constantly). I have crafted a letter with the intent to either convince my HOA to let us keep the chickens, or flush out the fact that they are simply taking an entrenched, prejudicial stance (which I intend to use as evidence later when I approach local, state, and Federal reps under the auspices of "sustainability").
A copy of my draft is located at
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IXVrJsLA4lHI7JP5-LbON_SbS2Q4CIrRegiSGkKJM7Q/edit?usp=drive_web; I am looking for feedback, especially on citations I can include that will directly support my argument. Some of the citations I have included provide more indirect than direct support, so if any of you have better information, I will gratefully welcome it.
