Rooster bill moves ahead in council

By Treena Shapiro
Advertiser Staff Writer

If you take the roosters away, the dominant hen will crow, said Annette Lee of the Hawai'i Game Breeders Association.

That's only one reason a handful of chicken advocates offered in opposition to a proposed city law that will ban roosters in residential neighborhoods to eliminate noise problems. The bill passed through the Parks & Public Safety committee anyway, and will be up for final full council vote Nov. 13.

An acting police major and city prosecutor testifying yesterday informed council members that a proposed law that will ban roosters on lots smaller than 300 acres will be difficult to enforce if rooster owners are allowed to keep the birds they already have.

Committee Chairman Jon Yoshimura said the bill will be amended to remove all chickens from residential property by Jan. 1. However, he said, even if a parcel is smaller than 300 acres, roosters will still be allowed if a parcel is zoned for agriculture, preservation or country.

The other concern, said acting police major Stephen Kim, is gender distinction. At certain ages and in different breeds, it is difficult to determine a chicken's gender.

Yoshimura said: "We were given very specific details about how long it takes to sex a chicken."

Lee said the game breeders association has proposed a compromise that would allow them to educate chicken owners about the noise issue, by use of hoods, carrying cases, muzzles, surgical procedures, soundproofing or lowering the ceiling of the coop or pen.

Chu Lan Kwok, who brought props that included a toy rooster that crowed "Old MacDonald," defended raising chickens.

"Chickens give good luck, good fortune and (are) auspicious," she said. They also represent manhood, she told council members.

However, Patricia Ann Lantere, who said her rooster woes began when Frank Fasi was mayor, urged the council members to pass the bill. "They crow all the time and there's no way to stop them from crowing. You can't sleep, you can't take a nap," she said. "They're farm animals."