http://www.projo.com/eastbayandmass/content/projo_20060615_wnturk15.2c0d36.html Pigs won't fly, so he's going to try turkeys Thomas Chace intends to raise 200,000 turkeys on his Touisset property, after the town rejected his plan to keep swine on the 26-acre site, but a town official says what Chase really wants is a subdivision. 01:00 AM EDT on Thursday, June 15, 2006 By KIA HALL HAYES Journal Staff Writer WARREN -- Thomas Chace wants to put up to 200,000 turkeys on his Touisset property, but Town Council President Frank Alfano smells a rat. "It seems like he's just trying to stir things up to get what he really wants," Alfano said, referring to Chace's intention to put 14 houses on his 26-acre parcel, a plan that the town Planning and Zoning boards have denied. Chace, of Chace Real Estate Co., initially asked the council for permission to raise 10,000 swine on the property, but withdrew his request after a heated discussion with the council Tuesday. Abandoning that plan, Chace and co-owners Joseph and Maria Silveira now hope to raise 100,000 to 200,000 turkeys in five 10,000-square-foot barns and more than 500,000 fish on the land. Chace said he had preferred raising swine because turkeys bring the possibility of the avian flu. "It's a concern of mine; that's why I thought the idea of pigs would be a whole lot better," he said, adding that pigs are less intrusive than turkeys. Chace said he would meet with state Department of Environmental Management officials to learn how to mitigate avian-flu concerns. He said that if he had known that there were ways to safely raise turkeys, he would never have tried to raise swine in the first place. "I didn't know I was going to be up there and be insulted by the head of the Town Council," he said. Town Planner Michelle Maher said the barn structures could require a zoning variance, and that Chace would need a zoning amendment to raise fish, which is not permitted in an R-40 zone. Town Solicitor Fausto Anguilla said Chace would need a special-use permit, at the very least. "If he submits an application, it's going to be dealt with fairly and accordingly," he said. Chace said he would be talking to the Planning Board and the Zoning Board to get the necessary approvals. In the meantime, the owners will file an appeal with Superior Court to get the town's ruling on the subdivision overturned. Chace said the turkey farm would cease once the subdivision was approved. "We're not trying to invade the neighborhood.... We are trying to keep a positive cash flow going on the property," he said. Alfano said Chace's plan was a ploy to scare the town into approving his subdivision. "To mention the avian flu is a terrible thing to do to the community," he said. Dr. Christopher Hannafin, the state public health veterinarian for the DEM, said raising 200,000 turkeys poses no more of a risk of avian flu than any other disease affecting birds. Raising 200,000 turkeys would make Chace's farm the largest poultry operation in the state, but as long as Chace screens his birds for diseases and keeps them housed to prevent contact with wild birds, the risk for any disease is relatively low. Hannafin says there is no state permit or license required if the birds are not imported or exported between other states. "Just as long as you're environmentally friendly, you can do it," he said. That's exactly the concern, said Fire Chief Alexander Galinelli, who has been developing an avian-flu preparedness plan with other town officials for several months. If the largest poultry farm in the state isn't run responsibly, that could pose a major health concern, he said. "People would be very uncomfortable," Galinelli said. khayesATprojo.com/ (401) 277-7469 Jeffrey Chace http://www.chace.demon.nl