(A) Permit required.
(1) Permit required. No person shall raise, harbor, or keep chickens within the city without a valid annual permit obtained from the Code Enforcement Officer or designee under the provisions of this chapter.
(2) Application. In order to obtain a permit, an applicant must submit a completed application on forms provided by the Code Enforcement Officer and pay all fees required as approved from time to time by resolution of the City Council.
(3) Requirements. The requirements to receive a permit shall include:
(a) All requirements of this chapter being met.
(b) All fees, as may be provided for from time to time by City Council resolution, for the permit are paid in full.
(c) All amounts owed to the city, including but not limited to liens, fines, and judgements must be paid in full.
(d) The property to be permitted shall contain only one single-family dwelling that is owned and occupied by the permittee.
(e) The applicant has successfully completed an approved class in raising chickens in an urban setting. A certificate or other documentation of completion shall be provided to the Code Enforcement Officer.
(4) Issuance of permit. If the Code Enforcement Officer concludes as a result of the information contained in the application that the requirements for a permit have been met, then the permit shall be issued. The permit shall expire one year from issuance.
(5) Denial, suspension, revocation, non-renewal. The Code Enforcement Officer may deny, suspend, revoke, or decline to renew any permit issued for any of the following grounds:
(a) False statements on any application or other information or report required by this chapter to be given by the applicant.
(b) Failure to pay any application, penalty, re-inspection or re-instatement fee required by this chapter or City Council resolution.
(c) Failure to correct deficiencies noted in notices of violation in the time specified in the notice.
(d) Failure to comply with the provisions of an approved mitigation/remediation plan by the Code Enforcement Officer or designee.
(e) Failure to comply with any provision of this chapter.
(6) Notification. A decision to revoke, suspend, deny, or not renew a permit shall be in writing, delivered by ordinary mail or in person to the address indicated on the application.
(7) Effect of revocation. When an application for a permit is denied, or when a permit is revoked, the applicant may not re-apply for a new permit for a period of one year from the date of the denial or revocation.
(8) Appeals. No permit may be denied, suspended, revoked, or not renewed without notice and an opportunity to be heard is given the applicant or holder of the permit. In any instance where the Code Enforcement Officer has denied, revoked, suspended, or not renewed a permit, the applicant or holder of urban chickens may appeal the decision to the City Manager, or designee other than the Code Enforcement Officer within ten business days of receipt by the applicant or holder of the permit of the notice of the decision. The applicant or holder of the permit will be given an opportunity for a hearing. The decision of the officer hearing, the appeal, or any decision by the Code Enforcement Officer which is not appealed in accordance to this chapter shall be deemed final action.
(B) Number and type of chickens allowed. A maximum of two female chickens, meaning members of the subspecies Gallus domesticus, a common domesticated fowl, are allowed on a permittee's property.
(C) Zoning districts allowed. Permits can be granted for owner occupied, single-family detached properties in all residential zoning districts, including but not limited to R-1L, R-1I, R-1S, R-2, R-3 and R-4 Districts, and those portions of planned unit developments that have correlating minimum lot widths and areas, and any other residential subdivision.
(D) Non-commercial use only. A permit shall not allow the permittee to engage in chicken breeding or fertilizer production for commercial purposes.
(E) Enclosures.
(1) Chickens must be kept in an enclosure or fenced area at all times. Chickens shall be secured within a henhouse during non-daylight hours.
(2) Enclosures must be kept in a clean, dry, odor-free, neat, and sanitary condition at all times.
(3) Henhouses and chicken pens must provide adequate ventilation, adequate sun, and shade and must be impenetrable to rodents, wild birds, and predators, including dogs and cats.
(4) Henhouses.
(a) Henhouses shall be designed to provide safe and healthy living conditions for the chickens with a minimum of four square feet per bird while minimizing adverse impacts to other residents in the neighborhood.
(b) A henhouse shall be enclosed on all sides and shall have a roof and doors. Access doors shall be able to be shut and locked at night. Opening windows and vents shall be covered with predator and bird proof wire of one inch or smaller openings.
(c) The materials used in making a henhouse shall be uniform for each element of the structure such that the walls are made of the same material, the roof 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. Henhouses shall be well maintained.
(d) Henhouses and chicken pens shall only be located in the rear yard.
(e) Henhouses and chicken pens must be located at least ten feet from the property line and at least 25 feet from any adjacent residential principal structure and shall meet all other accessory structure provisions of the zoning ordinance.
(F) Odor and noise impacts.
(1) Odors from chickens, chicken manure, or other chicken related substances shall not be perceptible beyond the boundaries of the permitted tract of land.
(2) Noise from chickens shall not be loud enough beyond the boundaries of the permitted parcel at the property boundaries to disturb persons of reasonable sensitivity.
(G) Predators, rodents, insects, and parasites. The permittee shall take necessary action to reduce the attraction of predators and rodents and the potential infestation of insects and parasites. Chickens found to be infested with insects and parasites that may result in unhealthy conditions to human habitation must be removed at the direction of the Code Enforcement Officer.
(H) Feed and water. Chickens shall be provided with access to feed and clean water at all times. The feed and water shall be unavailable to rodents, wild birds, and predators.
(I) Waste storage and removal. All stored manure shall be covered by a fully enclosed structure with a roof or lid over the entire structure. No more than three cubic feet of manure shall be stored on the permitted property. All other manure not used for composting or fertilizing shall be removed. The henhouse, chicken pen, and surrounding area must be kept free from trash and accumulated droppings. Uneaten feed shall be removed in a timely manner.
(J) Unlawful acts.
(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to keep chickens in violation of any provision of this chapter or any other provision of this Code of Ordinances.
(2) It shall be unlawful for any owner of property to allow chickens to be kept on the property in violation of the provisions of this chapter.
(3) No person shall keep chickens inside a single-family dwelling unit or any other structure than an approved henhouse.
(4) No person shall slaughter any chickens within the city outside of legally operating poultry production facilities.
(5) No person shall keep a rooster.
(6) No person shall keep chickens on a vacant or uninhabited property.
(K) Nuisances. Any violation of the terms of this chapter that constitutes a health hazard or that interferes with the use or enjoyment of neighboring property is a nuisance and may be abated under the general nuisance abatement provisions in Chapter 97 of this Code of Ordinances.
(Ord. 2022-17, passed 10-6-2022)