Backyard Chickens, Once Scourge of Latino Ghettos, Hip in Upscale Neighborhoods
In San Marino, one of the most upscale communities in Southern California, you can have a five-car garage, an Olympic-size pool, tennis courts and houses larger than some office buildings.
Jayme Frye
One thing you can't have is chickens. Long associated with the backyard barrios of Pacoima and East L.A., the chicken, however, is coming home to roost in the estates of the sustainable set.
And so, one woman wants San Marino to let her have her fowl:
Pam King has brought the issue to the San Marino City Council, asking it to change its longstanding ban on backyard chickens, according to the Pasadena Sun. It's considering it.
King is riding a wave of eco-consciousness, according to the paper. Her home has solar panels, a garden described as "an urban farm" and drought resistant landscaping.
She wants to farm chickens at home, and she's not alone. The farm-to-table movement, it seems, has inspired a new urban wave of domestic chicken lovers, exemplified by the Los Angeles Urban Chicken Enthusiasts, a group founded in 2009.
You can have your chickens in L.A., Pasadena, South Pasadena and La Canada Flintridge.
San Marino is looking into allowing them, albeit with limits and possibly even a permit required.
We find it kind of amusing when something once seen as ghetto (backyard chickens, taco trucks, Baja cuisine) becomes de rigueur in the eyes of a certain class. Next thing you know they'll be hosting carne asada barbecues in San Marino too.
[@dennisjromero / djromero@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]
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