Roostergate II is very active and one of the many issues plaguing Willistown Township. There are two women vying for supervisor, Molly Perrin and Cindi Myers. Where are they on the CURRENT issues in Willistown? I am not including the sewer sale in this, because Willistown broke up with AQUA already and a couple of the original sewer rats are creating ridiculous issues over not quite sure what so they don’t count…although it was amusing to see them taken to task for essentially “fake news” at this evening’s meeting…but I digress…sorry not sorry.
Anyway, one of the BIG BIG issues again are roosters. And not just on one street although the Martyrrific Rooster Mommy of Laurel Circle does seem to draw attention to herself, doesn’t she?
So in the spirit of KYC or KNOW YOUR CANDIDATE, where are Molly Perrin and Cindi Myers on Roosters and potential abuse of ASA (Agricultural Security Areas)? This rooster issue has been going on since 2019 the first time, right?
Therefore ladies vying for votes, let’s have it. You have Facebook pages as candidates, so let’s git r’ done. This is a local issue, ergo a should be discussed election issue.
AS SUPERVISOR, HOW EXACTLY TO YOU PLAN TO DEAL WITH THE ROOSTER ISSUE?ARE ROOSTERS IN CHARGE OR WILLISTOWN OFFICIALS?
DO NOT MESSAGE ME. POST YOUR POSITION ON YOUR LOVELY CAMPAIGN PAGES. AND IF YOU DON’T DECLARE WHERE YOU ARE ON THIS ISSUE, THAT WILL SADLY ANSWER QUESTIONS VOTERS HAVE. LADIES, IF YOU WANT TO MAKE AN OMLETTE, YOU HAVE TO BREAK SOME EGGS.
Cock a doodle do ladies, cock a doodle do. I don’t have a proverbial horse (or rooster) in this race, but your fellow residents want to know what you are planning on doing. One of you will be elected in November and there is no hiding behind the other supervisors on this and other issues, there can’t be and shouldn’t be ….. Your constituency wants to hear the sound of your voices. Right now you aren’t saying much of anything about anything and well, speak up, find your voices…or why are you even running?
Not trying to be mean because I like you both, but neither of you say much of anything publicly about issues and it’s quite frankly perplexing.
Apparently ROOSTERS were conducting this morning’s crazy train in Chester County. You know, I probably WASN’T going to talk about ROOSTERS in Willistown AGAIN, until the Rooster Mommy left a comment on this blog this morning identifying herself, and opening the door to further discussion and opinions. I had not identified her previously as a courtesy, even if I kept receiving lovely (yes I am being sarcastic) messages from her friends since I wrote the first post. But she outed herself name and all, so in the effort to be accurate I am going to show you dear readers the clucking (you may have to click on the screenshot in order to read it):
Comment received 2 hours ago which would be approximately 7:20 A.M. today
So this is “Mr. Roo’s” owner. She is a realtor given her email. I don’t know, maybe some clients would like a rooster as a closing gift? (Just asking for a couple of friends on her street.)
Here is what she said when she wrote to the blog this morning in case you can’t see the screenshot. I will note it is copied exactly the way it was written so here you go rooster fans:
Time to start the day with a few facts – and not just ramblings. 1. When Mr ROO was rescued, he was disoriented and unfamiliar with histerritory and crowed early. He has since started around 6:45 – and is a “country alarm clock” for almost all of us that can hear him. He can’t crow non stop- it’s a 2 second crow, and another but not non stop. The rooster has been doing this since the start of the world. 2. When the person was bothered – instead of calling the owner, they called the police – as “anonymous” so the owner thought it was the original complainer from years ago who was trying to get her land to build another Mc Chateau. Then the person being bothered went to social media – who not only didn’t have their facts right about the situation, but they blasted the fine police and people of Willistown. So to answer your question – who needs attention? I may be old school, but what happened to calling someone and discussing ways to make things better? 3. The Rooster is put in his little barn every nite. The owner of MR ROO has done many things to muffle the crow- like stuffing towels in the window cracks, covering the door with a towel and 2 comforters, and is looking into other ideas. 4. You don’t live in Willistown – we do ! For reasons like we can grow our own food and flowers, crack an egg for breakfast and share eggs with people who care about what’s in their food. @ 35% of this area is under some kind of conservation easement, deed restriction, or parkland. You all come here to enjoy our views and walk our trails. And another fact – There are many levels of “residential” neighborhoods. The area where this rooster is on is almost 3 acres, has a 14 acre property, 8+ acre property and 10+ acre property in a stones throw. The rooster is not free ranging and right outside her window. Do you want to know how far away her window is? The only person complaining may be having trouble sleeping because of other problems in their life, and may need to evaluate the real cause of not being able to sleep? As I write this at 7:30 am, I can hear chain saws and leaf blowers, but was awakened by just birds loudly chirping – Long before the rooster crowed to announce the start of a new day. Could I close my window- sure, but then I would miss the best part of the day – for me- When the phone is not ringing and people don’t need my help …. A cup of coffee, a rooster crow – starts my day the best way.
Facts are important, I agree. So if you call someone on June 9, 2023 and it’s now June 22, 2023 and rooster is still LOUD A.F., is that being a good neighbor?
Since facts are important, I offer up the rooster confessional shared with permission from “person” being woken up:
Facts include the public comment at the most recent Board of Supervisors meeting about Mr. Roo:
So Mr. Roo has his “own little barn?” And regarding like “like stuffing towels in the window cracks, covering the door with a towel and 2 comforters, and is looking into other ideas.” So many mental pictures there, so many.
Ok first there is that visual of towels and blankets. Sorry not sorry but that sounds like the Clampetts thought that up? And I have checked with people who live on LARGER properties who do own roosters. Some have essentially like extra large dog crates for them inside their barns that they cover with a thin breathable cover that blocks the light much like people do with parrots etcetera to tell them it’s time for sleep. And if “Mr. Roo” is crowing THAT loud through “his own little barn” with the Clampett arrangement of comforters (are they Laura Ashley so he at least looks at little flowers?) and what is the thread count on the towel, maybe Mr. Roo is just complaining about the linen choices? Maybe try blackout shades or rehoming the rooster like you indicated you would in your voicemail message?
And in your message (recording above), you reference wanting to be “a good neighbor” or something along those lines, yet you say something this morning that is a little less than nice? This:
The only person complaining may be having trouble sleeping because of other problems in their life, and may need to evaluate the real cause of not being able to sleep?
~Mr. Roo’s Mommy 6/22/23
Wow just wow. That’s really being a good neighbor, huh? Clap, clap for 10 on the Bitch-O-Meter, right?
So if said rooster is being put inside (although no one can actually see that or they would be trespassing) and if Mr. Rooster is still being loud enough to wake your neighbors, your chickens, your goats and your donkeys, what does THAT tell you, Rooster Mommy? That your neighbors must all be horrible people? So because a rooster keeps waking up any neighbors THIS time around, they have problems in their life? Really? Wow. Are you so perfect?
Facts from last time:
I will remind everyone that Rooster Mommy opened this door by identifying herself by leaving a comment. I have not said her name personally, I only identify her as Rooster Mommy.
Roostergate 2 continues yet, I am a bad person for commenting about it? And wait, my favorite next to the bucolic marketing spin about fresh eggs (which of course begs the comment of wow that is some rooster if they can lay an egg), is that I don’t live in Willistown. Well Rooster Mommy thank sweet baby Jesus for that because there is something in the water and y’all didn’t even sell the sewer. You know what draws people’s attention to Willistown? How about how nasty people can be to their neighbors?
And oh yes the condescending talking down to me is so special and I feel so loved:
You all come here to enjoy our views and walk our trails.
~ Rooster Mommy 6/22/23
Oh my gosh can I carry your parasol too? Lady, I come to Willistown to visit my friends. And you would be surprised to know whom I know besides your two neighbors who would prefer your rooster NOT CROW SO DAMN EARLY EVERY SINGLE DAY. They let me into polite society and into Willistown shocking as that might seem to you. I get it I am a peon, a peasant. Whatever. That’s pretty funny actually.
Shared with permission from “person” being woken up
You say:
The area where this rooster is on is almost 3 acres, has a 14 acre property, 8+ acre property and 10+ acre property in a stones throw. The rooster is not free ranging and right outside her window.
~Rooster mommy 6/22/23
But you aren’t on 3 acres are you and what does that have to do with the proverbial price of eggs? How much pasture do all of your animals have? How many animals do you have? I don’t really care and I like goats and chickens, just curious. And while you have larger properties a stone’s throw away (you dropped your apostrophe by the way), you aren’t disturbing them because they have larger properties. That’s the point you seem to be missing.
2. When the person was bothered – instead of calling the owner, they called the police – as “anonymous” so the owner thought it was the original complainer from years ago who was trying to get her land to build another Mc Chateau. Then the person being bothered went to social media – who not only didn’t have their facts right about the situation, but they blasted the fine police and people of Willistown.
~ rooster mommy 6/22/23
After the last time Rooster Mommy had a rooster and the kerfuffle that ensued, can you blame “person” for just calling the police? Sadly since it’s Rooster Groundhog Day over on your street maybe they felt there was no option? And given the tone of this comment towards a woman who yes is a friend well hmmm I don’t know?
Also when you call the police you are not anonymous. They take down your name and address and phone number. When the police come out to address a situation like this they are trying to de-escalate and find a solution, so perhaps they just didn’t feel they had to tell you her name at that juncturet?
Not to put too fine a point on it I was on the Zoom side of the recent Board of Supervisors Meeting and heard public comment. Your neighbor neither blasted the police or people in Willistown. She calmly discussed what she felt were the issues, and even Willistown will tell you this is not the only poultry issue cropping up. AND SHE THANKED THE POLICE.
And I am amused that you view me as all of social media. This is a topic that interests me and and I followed Roostergate 1 but didn’t say much, but well, since it’s Roostergate Groundhog Day and the issues is also in other places of the same township, I am following this. There is no crime in that and again, my opinion is roosters belong on farms.
Well I could go on, but I have things to do, so let’s move along with this next part of your comment (I want to ensure you feel “heard”):
Could I close my window- sure, but then I would miss the best part of the day – for me- When the phone is not ringing and people don’t need my help …. A cup of coffee, a rooster crow – starts my day the best way.
~ rooster mommy 6/22/23
I get it, I get it, I am a horrible, terrible person in your eyes because I think roosters belong on actual farms. And while you don’t like my opinions, I am entitled to them. Even if I do not live in Willistown.
Your email indicates you are a realtor, and I looked you up but won’t mention your firm, but let’s look at it from a realtor selling a property. If you were selling a house next door to yours how would you make a prospective buyer, purchasing a house in a residential neighborhood, see your property? As a realtor when people want a suburban vibe, does that fit it? And would you tell them about that Air B-n-B that is supposedly there on your street? If you had identified your property as being larger than not quite 3 acres, honestly I wouldn’t have even written about the rooster most likely. But my opinion is you are asking a lot of your neighbors.
I will go further and point out that your personal Waterloo over keeping roosters when you already went through this once is WHY keeping chickens gets a bad rap in many municipalities which I think is a shame because again, I like chickens and find their laying songs both happy and oddly soothing. But this whole thing? It will eventually cause Willistown to stop being an ostrich and enact an ordinance over chickens and such, which may not be to the liking of a lot of people in your township. And maybe you can’t hear your rooster over your phone ringing all of the time with people asking for help, but what about those neighbors you want to be a good neighbor to? Don’t they matter at all?
Lots of people around me have chickens, they are lovely animals. Lots of my friends have chickens, goats, horses, cows. But anyone I have even known that has had a rooster has had them on actual FARMS, and the properties are 5 acres or more….and the roosters are kept inside the barn and do not crow until let out into their runs or whatever in the morning.
Here’s a thought: you could just be a grown up and rehome the latest rooster to an actual farm and visit it. If you really want to be a good neighbor, that is. I mean why put yourself through all of this again? But hey, just my “rambling” thoughts and opinions, right? In the meantime, cluck off sister and have a wonderful day, bless your heart.
I love Willistown, don’t misunderstand me, but the way things happen and the way things are done sometimes makes a person wonder about life’s little conundrums, doesn’t it?
One of the weaknesses and Willistown has to do with their zoning department. They have made a few missteps there and will leave it at that and that includes personnel. I’ll be polite and not point them out, including from past mistakes.
I started wondering about zoning there again when Wildflower Farm opened. They invited the zoning officer to come make sure they were doing everything right. And then we all know what happened there after that, yes? It was a couple years of round robin and when it’s zoned a farm but it’s not supposed to be a farm yet it is a farm, right? And this was over growing flowers. It was not all the NOFIMBY neighbors was it?
So there is this agricultural zoning, right and there are 2 acre lots, correct? A couple of years ago there was this hullabaloo about chickens that really wasn’t about chickens at all it was about roosters. And roosters can be a pain in the ass if you’re not on a really big property because they’re noisy birds it’s in their nature to crow.
But when you’re living close to other people, it would be common sense to make sure your rooster stayed inside until a reasonable hour every morning, and I know people that do that they keep them in large pens, and they even keep them in areas where they put covers/curtains over things, so the roosters still think it’s dark outside. It actually works. I was talking with someone who has had to do it and another person remarked how this is the time of year where they have to figure out if they have hens or roosters and if they have roosters, they get rehomed to larger properties.
So there is this rooster in Willistown again. He kinda starts before 5 AM some mornings, and before 6 AM other mornings. He also wakes up other animals where he lives as well as neighbors. Goats and chickens don’t bother me particularly, but wow donkeys are also noisy!
Maybe the rooster owner is a heavy sleeper. Or maybe the rooster is far enough away from their bedroom window that they don’t hear it. Next I have to ask are they actually a farm or they just a residential property? Because in this township it does get confusing, doesn’t it ?
Willistown actually has a rooster ordinance and this stood out:
adding a new §139-97.D, as follows:
139-97.D The keeping of guineafowl, peacocks, or roosters is prohibited except in the RU Zoning District on lots of ten acres or greater when associated with a farm use pursuant to §139-12.D. Any structure or building for the housing of guineafowl, peacocks, or roosters shall be no less than 500 feet from any occupied structure on a neighboring lot. Non-conforming animals may not be replaced and the non-conformity must be resolved no more than 5 (five) years from the date of enactment of this Ordinance.
So if this isn’t a 10 acre property why does it have a rooster at all? I would hate to say this is a case of it depends who you know, but is this a case of it depends who you know? I will note someone else said this ordinance with the 10 acre thing didn’t actually pass and apparently roosters are allowed on 4 acres or more in this RA or RU zoning? (I get confused because it seems like both are in play here and I could be wrong about that but that’s what it seems like?) And this is yet another slightly weird thing here?
And again, I really love Willistown, but there are all these conundrums aren’t there? Come on, Willistown level the playing field maybe like maybe you need a new zoning officer again? Willistown seems to go through zoning people don’t they?
Since I wrote this post I have been accused of bullying and told to “stay in my lane”. This is about a loud rooster. Not about disliking chickens, donkeys, goats, other farm animals, etc. Or any people in particular. And as always, I am only golden if I have an opinion on what people want me to have an opinion on?
Chickens are a weird thing on their own in PA as a whole. Some municipalities want to forbid them but instead ignore them. Some municipalities just say no altogether. Some municipalities limit the numbers of chickens depending on property size. I actually have an opinion that loud roosters are what stirs the pot against chickens in municipalities.
I like chickens and their sounds and their laying songs, and have neighbors all around who have them but guess what no roosters, so it’s all very pleasant. I also happen to like goats. Donkeys I have no real opinion on other than they always sound indignant and like goats they smell kind of rank at times. I have friends that have all of these animals, but interestingly enough, never roosters. Hope that clears things up.
The last time roosters came up it wreaked havoc in this township, didn’t it? So excuse the hell out of me wondering WHY there is Groundhog Day over roosters again? And is it wrong to feel for people who don’t wish to be woken up super freaking early every day? Isn’t there that reasonable expectation of quiet enjoyment thing?
