This is a great tool, but it may be incomplete. Or, rather, in your researches to decide whether your community allows chickens, you may have to do a bit more digging.
I've only really looked at New Orleans, as I'm familiar with the zoning designations and setup of the ordinance documents.
I know that New Orleans has various zones (Single Family Residential, Multi Family Residential, Industrial, Light Industrial, etc), and that each zone has a different set of allowed uses (tho some, of course, overlap).
New Orleans does not specify "you may have 6 chickens per household" anywhere. I've searched "poultry", "fowl", "Chicken", "livestock"... finally came up with this:
My residential zone (R1-A) does not allow kennels. In the definitions section of the CZO, Kennels are defined as: "Domestic Animal Kennel, Commercial. The keeping of any dogs, cats or other domestic animals, regardless of number, for sale, breeding, boarding or treatment purposes except in an animal hospital, pet beauty parlor, or pet shop, as permitted by these regulations, or the keeping of five (5) or more domestic animals or fowl, six (6) months or older, on premises used for residential development, or the keeping of more than one (1) domestic animal on vacant property or on property used for business or commercial purposes. "
Therefore, I have inferred that I may keep up to 4 animals (chickens) per residential address (I have two addresses. Woo!). So, between my 2 cats, my tenant's 2 cats and 1 dog, I may have 3 additional chickens. Or I may assume that my scaredy cat will hide, and one of her cats will hide, so then I can have 5 chickens.
THEN the animal-related codes (accessed via the BYC L.O.R.E search for New Orleans) come into effect: Keep the pen clean and stench-free, don't attract rats, etc.
Also, there are restrictions against nuisance animals that make recurring annoying noises, therefore roosters would *not* be allowed in New Orleans, tho the code does not expressly prohibit roosters. (I don't have the time to find the verbage of this at present, but it's what I recall from my previous researches).
So, it's not just the animal keeping section of the code, but how that relates to each person's property's zone and the allowable uses thereof, and any related definitions. These documents are convoluted and difficult to read. It took me a couple months of searching and discussing it before I became confident of my interpretation.
Thank you for working on this tool... it is already very helpful, and as the users of the forum continue to contribute it can be dialed in ever more precisely.
ETA: also, the ordinances per zone will have information re where/how one can build a coop (aka "accessory structure"): distance from property lines, max height, where height is figured (in my area, height of a building is taken at the MIDPOINT of a sloped roof!), etc.
I've only really looked at New Orleans, as I'm familiar with the zoning designations and setup of the ordinance documents.
I know that New Orleans has various zones (Single Family Residential, Multi Family Residential, Industrial, Light Industrial, etc), and that each zone has a different set of allowed uses (tho some, of course, overlap).
New Orleans does not specify "you may have 6 chickens per household" anywhere. I've searched "poultry", "fowl", "Chicken", "livestock"... finally came up with this:
My residential zone (R1-A) does not allow kennels. In the definitions section of the CZO, Kennels are defined as: "Domestic Animal Kennel, Commercial. The keeping of any dogs, cats or other domestic animals, regardless of number, for sale, breeding, boarding or treatment purposes except in an animal hospital, pet beauty parlor, or pet shop, as permitted by these regulations, or the keeping of five (5) or more domestic animals or fowl, six (6) months or older, on premises used for residential development, or the keeping of more than one (1) domestic animal on vacant property or on property used for business or commercial purposes. "
Therefore, I have inferred that I may keep up to 4 animals (chickens) per residential address (I have two addresses. Woo!). So, between my 2 cats, my tenant's 2 cats and 1 dog, I may have 3 additional chickens. Or I may assume that my scaredy cat will hide, and one of her cats will hide, so then I can have 5 chickens.
THEN the animal-related codes (accessed via the BYC L.O.R.E search for New Orleans) come into effect: Keep the pen clean and stench-free, don't attract rats, etc.
Also, there are restrictions against nuisance animals that make recurring annoying noises, therefore roosters would *not* be allowed in New Orleans, tho the code does not expressly prohibit roosters. (I don't have the time to find the verbage of this at present, but it's what I recall from my previous researches).
So, it's not just the animal keeping section of the code, but how that relates to each person's property's zone and the allowable uses thereof, and any related definitions. These documents are convoluted and difficult to read. It took me a couple months of searching and discussing it before I became confident of my interpretation.
Thank you for working on this tool... it is already very helpful, and as the users of the forum continue to contribute it can be dialed in ever more precisely.
ETA: also, the ordinances per zone will have information re where/how one can build a coop (aka "accessory structure"): distance from property lines, max height, where height is figured (in my area, height of a building is taken at the MIDPOINT of a sloped roof!), etc.
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