Ohio Townships and the Ohio Revised Code UPDATE!

[spoggy]

Danaus29 - You keep talking about the county I live in, I thought this is purely between me and Carlisle Twp.? Does Lorain County need to be on my radar as well? I have 2.33 acres, and the back property line is the center of the Black River. You're in the Big Darby watershed, I'm in the Black River watershed...do I see a trend here? My relationship with the neighbors is pretty good. I live on a cul-de-sac with 13 other properties and most of them on my side of the street range between 2-3 acres, there are 9 of us. The rest of the properties are less than 1 acre. We get the 15 plus contiguous properties from 6 houses across the county road from our street that are included in our subdivision. All of the large acreage homes are set back from our steet about 100 feet, and it's about another 500-800 feet back to the river depending on which property you're on. We are on a bow on the river, so the properties on the cul-de-sac have 75 feet or less frontage and 250 feet or more across the back; the lots are pie shaped. Because of this, the houses are within 20-30 feet of each other. There is a 2 lane road on top of a 30 foot shale cliff on the other side of the river that follows the river; there are no houses between the river and the road. Across from the rear of my property, on the other side of the road is a 1900's school property that is owned by the Township and is no longer in use. Behind and next to the school are farms and farmland. Across the street in the front of my house are 4 houses on lots of less than 1 acre and behind them is a working farm. Being in the middle of all this is why I thought that a few chickens on my property would be okay.

nonseq - I agree with the whole pets thing, I'm using that language with everyone I talk to. I don't even agree with some folks and the whole "pets you can eat" thing. I'll happily eat eggs and cull what I need to when and if the time comes, but eat them? Nah. I'm only interested in bantams, and D'Anvers at that. Please keep me posted.

 

[nonseq]

Spoggy - As far as I can tell the township rules take precedence over the county rules. That's what the zone/code guy in the Village of Canal Winchester told me. Villages, cities and townships can set their own rules.

 

[Danaus29]

Townships set their own rules if they are under home rule. You will need to contact your township trustees to find out if this needs to go before the township. Most townships do not have home rule, in that case you must present your case to the county. On a quick search I could not determine which entity does your local zoning.

This looks like the township does the zoning work
http://www.loraincounty.us/Departments/Building-Department.aspx

Far as I know the Black River is not a state and national scenic river. The Darby is. The Darby is also a "protected critical watershed habitat" and IMO if they wanted to keep it that protected they should have offered all the residents fair market value for their properties and bought us all out.

I do wish you the best of luck in getting your chickens. It may be a long and expensive road but it can be walked. If your township trustees can be approached about this then you need to talk to them. Get all the information you can about the situation and what needs to be done before applying for a variance. Keep your property immaculate and mowed. If you can, go to the trustee meetings. Ask if they have any written guidelines about zoning and building proceedures.

 

[welsummerchicks]

One thing I know about zoning boards - they get fixed ideas. They can get a little unpleasant sometimes.

I went to a zoning board meeting as I was trying to get permission to build something. I was sitting in the chairs in front of the board. I was dressed very nicely - big girl clothes, earrings, etc, and a buisiness brief case.

The people on the board were talking about me. Said I was crazy to want to build this particular building...they really went on and on.

I raised my hand politely and said, 'The crazy lady is sitting right here'.

The conversation was a little more polite after that, but it still didn't change the results. They had already decided what they wanted to do and that was the end of that.

So what I did, I bought a property in a different township. Let my tax dollars go to someone else.

 

[spoggy]

Well, I'm going to run some of this past Peggy Hill, she is the director of the Agricultural & Resource Law Program at OSU. She is a lawyer and has a particular interest in Rural Zoning Law. If she can't give me any answers, maybe she can point me in the right direction.

 

[nonseq]

Good for you!

I collected 7 signatures and three letters from my neighbors saying they approve of my chickens before my DD fell down and scraped her leg. We just had to go home for a band-aid then. I also found out who complained about me and what his complaints are. So now I know what to address with him.

Wish me luck! I think I'll take him over some eggs and some beer. He likes beer.

 

[spoggy]

Quote:
Good Luck! I lurvs me some eggs and beer! (Well...I like my eggs pickled WITH my beer

)

I figure that I haven't tried hard enough to give up yet!

 

[spoggy]

Ohhh, I might be on to something. Here's a letter I wrote to Peggy Hall Esq. Director of the OSU Agricultural & Resource Law Program:

Dear Ms. Hall,

My name is Steve S, and I am a resident of Carlisle Township in central Lorain county. I found the OSU Agricultural & Resource Law Program website through Google. I am writing in hopes that you and your staff can give some insight into Ohio Ag Law and the Ohio Revised Code.

Let me start by saying that I want to keep bantam chickens for exhibition, and as pets. I live in a platted subdivision and the township has no zoning regarding chickens. Instead, they prefer to default to ORC 519.21. I'm sure you're familiar with this section of the code. ORC 519.21 specifically prohibits "Dairy, poultry husbandry and animal husbandry" on lots bigger than 1 acre and less than 5 acres. The township may regulate here if they so choose.

In reading this section, it would appear that this is an attempt on the part of the State of Ohio to regulate Agriculture in platted subdivisions that lie outside of Municipalities. My understanding is that agriculture, in this particular context, represents a for profit enterprise that either partially or wholly supports the landowner. If it were meant to eliminate the ability to partake in any activity that resembles agriculture in a hobbyist context, landowners in platted subdivisions would not be able to keep dogs, cats, parrots, guinea pigs etc., as all these activities are types of animal husbandry. Is there any case law that supports this assertion, or more precisely defines the distinction between animal and poultry husbandry in an agricultural context, versus a pet ownership relationship? Any help or advice you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Steve S

Here's her response:

Mr. S,
Here are a few responses to your questions—note that I offer these not as legal advice, but for educational purposes:

You state that the township relies on the “default” of ORC 519.21 to prohibit chickens, but that section doesn’t specifically regulate chickens. ORC 519.21 is a general limitation of township zoning authority over agricultural land uses, but 519.21(B) provides several instances for which a township may regulate agriculture. The state of Ohio isn’t regulating agriculture in those instances like the platted subdivision, but instead is telling townships that the state will allow townships to regulate agriculture in those few situations. But it must be clear from the township’s zoning resolution that they are regulating the agricultural use if the situation is one that fits within 519.21(B); the township can’t rely solely on 519.21 as the regulation itself.

The Ohio Supreme Court has defined “animal husbandry" as "the branch of agriculture which is concerned with farm animals, especially as regards breeding, judging, care and production," and an "animal husbandman" is defined as "one who keeps or tends livestock." Webster's New International Dictionary (2 Ed.). This definition creates the distinction you’ve raised between farm animals and pet animals.

I hope this is helpful information.

Peggy Hall

I'm pretty sure there are no zoning restrictions in Carlisle Township concerning Livestock of any kind. I will have to go plunk down the $15 for a copy of their completezoning rulings and restrictions to be sure though. This is the best news I've had in a while.

 

[nonseq]

You is my hero

 

[Tlmcq]

Just got this today.

Warren County, Deerfield Township Ohio we can have chickens...Not many, no Roosters and must be confined 25ft from adjacent residential structure. This message is directly from code enforcement officer in Deerfield Township.