Sewanee Leases

Professor's dog (party animal Moe) dressed up for an important event...

Pink Flamingos and a ZEBRA on campus.

What's so weird about chickens??? Sewanee: the University of the South is comprised of 13,000, primarily forested, acres of land which we call the "domain". It is in middle Tennessee on the Cumberland Plateau about 2000 feet above sea level. There are countless bluff views, waterfalls, caves and trails. The university has roughly 1600 students and the town has maybe 2000 residents. The campus, which originated just before the civil war, has many sandstone buildings of Gothic architecture and is covered with large old growth trees. It's just beautiful.

The town is called Sewanee and the university owns all the land. Consequently, we own our homes, but lease the land. There is a Lease Committee which among other things, approves the removal of trees, construction of home improvements, colors, fences, sheds, signs, rentals etc. Similar to a historic district or homeowners association, when homeowners want to make a change, they are required to go through a committee. The lease superintendent must field calls relating to dogs, trash, cars, shrubs, yard maintenance, noise, businesses, neighbor disputes...

I'm told that the process with the lease committee can be tedious and frustrating. I don't doubt that, but have sympathy for both sides. I'm sure that as a result of my effort to officially legalize backyard chickens - I have created many hours of unforeseen work and controversy. I hope some of it has been amusing for those in the middle and I never intended to be a problem. All I wanted was a few unobtrusive pets who would be great for me, my family, our lifestyle and yard. Fortunately, I expect that the outcome will be clear rules that will be comfortable and beneficial to all residents of this very special town.

The Lease Committee Visit

The lease committee was invited to my house today at 5:00 to see the chickens and their setting.

The reason I started this blog was to show people how my chickens and I live, thereby proving that they are not livestock and not prohibited on my lease. Initially I contacted committee members and associates asking for advice and inviting people to see the yard. No one was interested in coming to my house (I live about a block from central campus - not exactly out of the way). My father, who is on my lease, specifically asked the lease superintendent to come see my yard and she agreed.

As time went on: we refused to remove the chickens based on the fact that we believe they are not in violation of our lease, the lease committee was invited to view the blog in hopes of settling the livestock question without all this fuss, we stated our intentions to appear at the lease committee meeting and address the issue, my father sent a formal letter with our objections to the complaint.

We received no response at all.

Next came the specific invitation to all 9 committee members to see the yard and meet the birds in question. One committee member called me right away. Neither my parents nor I heard from anyone else.

Today, that one very nice gentleman came promptly at 5:00.

No word from anyone else.

The meeting is Wednesday - the day after tomorrow.

The lease superintendent was emailed again this evening, requesting that she look at the yard in person tomorrow before the meeting.

So I wonder... have they already made up their minds? Do they not care? How do they treat other complaints?

And still I research... of course I am biased, but it's seeming like more cities and towns allow chickens than ban them. My mother said tonight, "until you, I've never known anyone who kept chickens as pets". Maybe that's the key - they're there, you just don't know it...

Research on the University's sustainability goals

The more people I talked to, the more it became clear that the University is very seriously and deliberately moving towards a more environmentally conscientious campus. I read the May 2008 draft of the strategic planning committee's addendum to the 2004 Strategic Plan on "Environmental Education and Sustainable Living".

I learned that among many admirable goals "the University shall be a place of reasoned discourse among academic disciplines and between academia and the wider community." - I'M part of the wider community! I'm very reasonable. I want to help!

Also of note to me, "we should launch a bold sustainability campaign based on the Plan. It is important to get broad support from all stakeholders: students, faculty, staff, administrators, Regents, Trustees, and the larger Sewanee community. We should raise awareness and establish an ethos of sustainability that is immediately palpable to all who come to Sewanee. We should motivate our campus and community through education, communication, promotion, and collaboration. " I love Sewanee. I love the University. This is something I believe in and want to be a part of!!

While I realize that these are proposals and recommendations rather than final plans, number 2 of the following was of particular interest:

"RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. Provide students with classes and internships that use food production as a means to rigorously explore the relationship between people and the environment.
2. Facilitate local sustainable food production by leaseholders by a) continuing and adding new community gardens; b) lifting the current blanket ban of livestock on the Domain.
3. Extend campus dining services? commitment to local and organic foods.
4. End the throwaway culture for catered events.
5. Change the name of the new ECO House to GreenHouse to suggest a new focus on sustainable food production by students in a nearby central campus garden.
6. Build a new FarmHouse on or near the site of the Old Dairy with a large organic garden."

I am so proud to be part of a community that is thinking this way. We are all in the business of educating people - even ourselves.