(a) License required.
(1) No person shall own, raise, harbor or keep any hens within the City without having first obtained a valid urban hen license from the City’s accounts and finance officer or his designee pursuant to the provisions of this section. The license shall be subject to the terms and conditions of this section and any additional conditions deemed necessary by the City Council to protect the public health, safety and welfare.
(2) License Application. Any person desiring to own, raise, harbor or keep hens within the City shall submit a written license application on a form provided by the City’s accounts and finance officer or his designee. Such application shall include the applicant’s name, address, telephone number and email address (if applicable), the number of hens to be kept on the premises address, and the applicant’s signature certifying the validity of the information provided therein and agreement to keep the hens in compliance with the provisions of this section and all related City ordinances.
(3) Licensing Requirements. The requirements for issuance of a license include the following.
a. Fee: the fee to obtain a license is twenty-five dollars ($25.00). The license shall expire July 31 of each year and shall be renewed before August 1 of each year.
b. Any and all judgments in the City’s favor and against the property owner of the premises have been paid in full, and in the event the applicant is a tenant or leaseholder of the premises, any and all judgments in the City’s favor and against said applicant have been paid in full.
c. The premises to be licensed shall be zoned as and contain only a one-family detached dwelling, occupied and used as such by the licensee.
d. The applicant has successfully completed an approved class in raising hens in an urban setting. The accounts and finance officer or his designee shall maintain a current list of such approved classes.
If the accounts and finance officer or his designee finds that all licensing requirements have been met, the officer shall issue the license to the applicant.
(4) Licensing Regulations. The following licensing regulations shall be additional requirements of the licensee.
a. Renewal. The annual renewal fee for a license is twenty-five dollars ($25.00). If the license is not renewed before August 1 of the expiration year, the owner or occupant of the premises for which the license was issued shall remove the hens from the City within thirty (30) days of the license expiration.
b. Non-commercial use only. Issuance of a license shall not allow the licensee to engage in hen breeding, egg production, fertilizer production, sales, display, or other related activity for commercial purposes.
c. Non-transferable. No license issued pursuant to this section shall be transferable from one person to another or from one premises to another.
d. The licensee shall keep the license on the licensed premises and provide proof of same upon request by any officer of the City.
(5) Denial, suspension, revocation, non-renewal. The accounts and finance officer or his designee may deny, suspend, revoke or decline to renew any issued license for any of the following reasons.
a. False statements on any application or in response to requests for information by the City.
b. Failure to pay any application, penalty, re-inspection or renewal fee required by this section.
c. Failure to comply with any notice of violation issued by the City pursuant to this section within the time specified therein.
d. Failure to comply with any provisions of this section.
Notice of denial, suspension, revocation or non-renewal of a license shall be in writing, be delivered by certified mail, return receipt requested, or by personal service on the license holder or other resident at the address provided on the application, and state the reason or reasons for said action.
(6) Effect of denial or revocation.
a. If a license is either denied or revoked, the applicant may not re-apply for a new license for a period of one (1) year from the date of the denial or revocation.
b. If the license is revoked, the owner or occupant of the premises for which the license was issued shall remove the hens from the City within thirty (30) days of the license revocation.
(7) Appeals. The license shall stand denied or revoked unless within five (5) working days after denial or receipt of the notice of revocation from the accounts and finance officer or his designee, the license applicant or holder files a written request for a public hearing on the accounts and finance officer’s or designee’s action. Public hearing shall be conducted before the city administrator or his designee on whether a license should be denied, reinstated or revoked, as the case may be. The city administrator or his designee may order the license issued or reinstated either conditionally or unconditionally, or revoke the license. Ten (10) days notice of the time and place of the public hearing shall be given to the license holder, who shall have an opportunity to appear before the city administrator or his designee and present any evidence or arguments the license holder may have as to why the action taken by the accounts and finance officer or his designee should not be approved by the city administrator or his designee.
(b) Number and type of hens allowed. No more than six (6) hens shall be allowed on any licensed premises. Roosters (male chickens) are prohibited.
(c) Zoning; One-Family Detached Dwellings.
(1) The keeping of hens shall be restricted to properties zoned as one-family detached dwellings (single family residences) as defined by Chapter 35 of the City Code, Sec. 35-3405(a), which states, in part: “a dwelling designed for and occupied by not more than one family and having no roof, wall, or floor in common with any other dwelling unit; this dwelling unit type consists of a fully detached single-family residence which is located on an individual lot or within a group development; this dwelling unit may not be split into two or more residences.”
(2) The provisions of this Sec. 7-1104A shall supersede any conflicting provisions of Chapter 35, “Zoning and Land Development,” of the City Code, including Sec. 35-3406(f), “Husbandry.”
(d) Enclosures; confinement. Chicken enclosures and chicken pens shall be designed, constructed and well maintained to provide safe and healthy living conditions for the hens while minimizing adverse impacts to other residents in the neighborhood.
(1) Hens must be kept in a chicken enclosure, chicken pen, or fenced area at all times. Hens shall be secured within a chicken enclosure during non-daylight hours.
(2) Chicken enclosures and chickens pens shall be located in the rear yard of a premises only, as defined by Chapter 35 of the City Code, Sec. 35-1203(385), “yard, rear.” Or, if no rear yard meets the setback requirements of subsection (d)(3) below, then chicken enclosures and chicken pens may be located in a side yard, as defined by Chapter 35 of the City Code, Sec. 35-1203(387), “yard, side,” as long as the setbacks in subsection (d)(3) below are met.
(3) The minimum setback for placement shall be five (5) feet from the premises property lines and twenty-five (25) feet from any residential dwelling, church, school or place of business.
(4) Chicken enclosures shall meet the following standards:
a. a minimum of four (4) square feet per hen;
b. be constructed of wood or other similar materials and enclosed on all sides with a roof, door(s) and secure latching mechanisms for any doors or windows;
c. include predator/bird proof wire of less than one (1) inch openings for any doors or windows;
d. provide adequate ventilation and protection from the elements;
e. contain an independent electric/heat source without the use of extension cords;
f. be resistant to rodents and predators, including dogs and cats.
(5) Chicken pens shall meet the following guidelines:
a. be fully enclosed with a roof and be covered with predator/bird proof wire or aviary netting;
b. be resistant to rodents and predators, including dogs and cats.
(6) The materials used in making chicken enclosures and chicken pens shall be uniform for each element of the structure such that the walls are made of the same material, the roof(s) has the same shingles or other covering, and any windows or openings are constructed using the same materials. The use of scrap, waste board, sheet metal, or similar materials is prohibited.
(7) A City building permit is not required unless the total size of the chicken enclosure will exceed 120 square feet, thereby meeting the definition of a major accessory structure as defined in Sec. 35-3201(b) of the City Code.
(e) Odor and noise impacts.
(1) Odors from hens, hen manure or other hen related substances shall not be perceptible beyond the boundaries of the licensed premises. Chicken enclosures and chicken pens shall be kept in a clean, neat and sanitary condition. Any accumulation of waste, uneaten or discarded feed, and fallen feathers shall be collected and discarded in a sanitary manner and with such frequency as is necessary to ensure that related odors are not detectable from adjacent properties and that any such accumulation does not constitute a nuisance as defined in Sec. 7-1112(b), “Animal Waste on Private Property,” and/or Sec. 21-1100, “Nuisances in General; Definitions,” of the City Code. Cleaning of chicken enclosures and chicken pens shall be done in such a manner which prevents any animal waste runoff onto public right-of-way and which complies with the provisions set forth in the City’s Stormwater Utility Ordinance, Chapter 34 of the City Code.
(2) Noise from hens shall not be loud enough beyond the property lines of the licensed premises on which hens are kept so as to disturb the public peace and quiet.
(f) Feed and water. Hens shall be provided with access to feed and clean water at all times. Feed must be stored in secure containers and in a secure location until it is placed for consumption by the hens. Feed must be stored in a manner so that it is not available to rodents, wild birds, predators or other pests.
(g) Waste storage and removal.
(1) Any manure that is kept on the licensed premises for compost and fertilizer use must be stored in a secure enclosed container or area to ensure that it is not visible from adjacent properties, that related odors are not detectable from adjacent properties, and that any such accumulation does not constitute a nuisance as defined in Sec. 7-1112(b) and/or Sec. 21-1100 of the City Code. All other manure not used for composting or fertilizing shall be removed.
(2) No more than three (3) cubic feet of manure shall be stored on the licensed premises.
(3) See also subsection (e)(1) above.
(h) Hens at large. The licensee shall not allow the licensee’s hens to roam off the licensed premises.
(i) Unlawful acts.
(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to own, raise, harbor or keep hens in violation of any provision of this chapter or any other provision of the City Code.
(2) No person shall keep hens inside a one-family detached dwelling unit, multi-family dwelling unit(s) or rental unit.
(3) No person shall keep hens on a vacant or uninhabited property within the City of Moline.
(4) No person shall keep a rooster within the City of Moline.
(5) No person shall slaughter any hen or rooster within the City of Moline.
(6) Should a dog or cat or other domesticated animal kill a hen on or off the licensed premises, said animal shall not be considered a dangerous or aggressive animal for that reason alone, and said action will not be cause for the City to enforce its animal control provisions.
(j) Nuisance violation.
(1) Any violation of the terms of this chapter that constitutes a health hazard or that interferes with the use or enjoyment of neighboring property shall constitute a nuisance and may be abated under the general nuisance abatement provisions of the City Code. Penalty for violation of any part of this section shall be as provided in Sec. 1-1107 of the Code.
(2) Should the City order abatement of the hens from the licensed premises as a result of a nuisance violation, neither the City of Moline nor the County of Rock Island shall be responsible for removal, temporary keeping or relocating of the hens.
(Ord. No. 3021-2016; new Sec. 7-1104A “URBAN HENS” enacted; 07/12/16)