FLORIDA -- Timothy and Diane Prosser simply want to raise their flock of chickens in peace so they can eat the eggs and watch their three kids show them at the county fair.
The Prossers's landlord simply wants the city to drop its case accusing him of illegally allowing the fowl on his property, a problem he said is the responsibility of his otherwise upstanding tenants.
The city simply wants the Prossers and their landlord to pay fines levied against them and get rid of the birds.
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| Timothy Prosser Sr. discusses neighbors' complaints about the chickens he keeps penned in the backyard of his home off Melody Ln in North Jacksonville. Also pictured is Prosser's wife Diane. |
And the chickens? They've yet to voice an opinion on the matter, though they can be a rather boisterous bunch.
The controversy began about three months ago when city code enforcement officials, answering neighborhood complaints, began citing the Prossers for violating an ordinance that prohibits poultry on their property. Justin Hart also got cited as the owner of the land at 7023 Melody Lane, just northwest of Interstate 295 and U.S. 1.
Poultry is allowed in property zoned for agricultural or rural residential use, where chickens and other animals can be kept with restrictions. The third of an acre where the Prossers' birds are penned is neither.
The Prossers have refused to pay the mounting fines — now up to $2,200 — claiming Hart said it was OK for them to move to the property with the chickens from a smaller plot in Marietta. They said they told Hart about being cited and believed he would take care of the problem.
“I’m a country boy,” said Timothy Prosser, 33, a burly, balding man with a strong Southern drawl. “I don’t let my chickens run free. They crow, but I can’t do nothing about that.”
A reporter’s trip to the property this week indeed found about 85 of the healthy-looking, booming birds separated in about 30 backyard pens. Prosser said he raises some and also rescues unwanted and sickly chickens, which he periodically sells after nursing them back to health.
Prosser, a repo man, said his wife uses the eggs for breakfast. He also believes teaching his children how to care for the birds keeps them busy and out of trouble. They’ve shown them in the Bradford County fair, once winning third place.
The Prossers' kids — Dakota, 9, Alisha, 7 and Timothy Jr., 4 — are quite fond of their pets.
“I love ’em,” Dakota said.
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| Dakota Prosser, 9, holds one of his family's chickens among the backyard pens at his family's home off Melody Lane in North Jacksonville. |
Hart said he first learned about the problem after being cited in early August — before he had been given the chance to remedy the problem. The Prossers said they had told Hart about their citations, which he denies.
Hart, who owns several dozen properties, said he didn’t know poultry was prohibited on the land and questioned why the city is making it such a big deal.
“I think the chickens should be left alone,” said Hart, 29. “They’re not bothering anybody.”
Hart is appealing his fine and a court hearing will be set, said Jason Teal, the chief assistant general counsel handling the case. The Prossers never sought to appeal the citations and refuse to pay their fines.
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| The Prosser family takes care of approximately 85 roosters and hens penned in the their backyard off Melody Lane in North Jacksonville. The family's landlord is being accused of allowing fowl to be illegally kept on the property. |
“There’s no good guy discount,” Teal said.
In the end, neither the Prossers nor Hart face being penned up as scofflaws since the violations are civil infractions. Dakota simply hopes the grown-ups can resolve the squabble so he and his pets can get on with life.
(Jacksonville.com - Sept 8, 2011)
