Ordinances!!

[animalluvur1450]

New to the forum, I don't even know if I'll be able to get chickens, but I know already that I love them! Just wanted to share my local laws:



21-30 PIGEONS AND POULTRY.

21-30.1 Keeping Pigeons and Poultry; Consent of Nearby Occupants.
No person shall keep any pigeons or poultry unless there is filed with the Health Officer the written consent of a majority of the owners of the premises within seventy-five (75) feet from each corner of the coop on which the pigeons or poultry are to be kept. One (1) consent per property. (1972 Code § 20-19.1)

21-30.2 Keeping Pigeons or Poultry; Limitations on Location, Number and Mobility.
No pigeons, chickens or other poultry shall be kept within twenty (20) feet of any structure which is used for human habitation, occupation or assembly; provided, in no case shall any person or persons be permitted to keep more than a total of fifty (50) chickens, ducks or other poultry, including pigeons. No pigeons, chickens or other poultry shall be permitted to run, fly or stray within twenty (20) feet of such structure; provided, this shall not apply to homing pigeons. (1972 Code § 20-19.2)

21-30.3 Pigeon and Poultry-Keeping Fee; Expiration Date.
No person shall keep pigeons, chickens, or other poultry without having first obtained a license from the Health Officer. The annual fee shall be one hundred ($100.00) dollars and licenses shall expire on December 31st of each year. (1972 Code § 20-19.3; Ord. No. O-00-54 § 3; Ord. No. O-07-51 § 1)

21-30.4 Keeping of Pigeons and Poultry; Sanitary Regulations.
The following regulations and conditions for the keeping and housing of pigeons, chickens and other poultry shall be complied with:
a. Structure:
1. The house or coop shall be at least four (4) feet above ground and extend no higher than fourteen (14) feet above ground. Where the house or coop is to be located on an existing building rooftop, the house or coop shall extend no higher than eight (8) feet above the building rooftop. The house or coop shall not be more than eight hundred (800) cubic feet. The floor one(1) foot beyond the vertical wall line of the house or coop shall be constructed of impervious material. The house or coop shall not be within three (3) feet of the property lines. Two (2) sketches must be presented to the Building Department for approval and permit.
2. The area under the structure is to be free and open.
3. Final approval of the structure must be obtained from the Health Officer or his agent, and the Construction Official.
b. Maintenance:
1. Dry and well ventilated.
2. Wall whitewashed or painted therein.
3. The exterior of the structure to be aesthetically acceptable.
4. Cleaned at least once a week between November 1 and May 1, twice a week between May 1 and November 1, and, if necessary, to be cleaned more often and be disinfected.
5. Perches to be removable and kept clean.
6. Nests to be removable, cleaned, aired and sunned at frequent intervals.
7. Drinking fountains in the area where the house or coop is located shall be clean and supplied at all times with clean water.
8. Yard in the area where the house or coop is located shall be clean and free from odors.
9. Pigeons and poultry shall not create a noise disturbance across or within a residential real property boundary. The sound level limit between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. is sixty-five (65) dBA, and between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. is fifty (50) dBA.
10. Pigeons and poultry coops or structures shall not be part of a residential or food establishment buildings, except poultry retail and wholesale establishments in conformance with the municipal zoning code.
(1972 Code § 20-19.4)

21-30.5 Existing Coops (Prior to Ordinance No. O-81-13).
a. Structure:
1. If there is an addition to the existing structure, it cannot extend higher than fourteen (14) feet above ground. If the addition is horizontal, the structure shall not be within three (3) feet of the property lines. The Construction Code, where applicable, will apply. Eight hundred (800) cubic feet will be the coop maximum.
2. Final approval of the structure must be obtained from the Health Officer or his agent; also the Construction Official, if applicable.
b. Maintenance:
1. Dry and well ventilated.
2. Wall whitewashed or painted therein.
3. The exterior of the structure to be aesthetically acceptable.
4. Cleaned at least once a week between November 1 and May 1, twice a week between May 1 and November 1, and if necessary, to be cleaned more often and be disinfected.
5. Perches and nests to be kept cleaned; and if they are removable, to be cleaned, aired and sunned at frequent intervals.
6. Drinking fountains in the area where the house or coop is located shall be clean and supplied at all times with clean water.
7. Yard in the area where the house or coop is located shall be clean and free from odors.
8. Pigeons and poultry shall not create a noise disturbance across or within a residential real property boundary. The sound level limit between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. and is sixty –five (65) dBA, and between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. is fifty (50) dBA.
(1972 Code § 20-19.5)


Its really crazy!!!!!!!!

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Lord thank you for letting me live in the country.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Good grief! Talk about overkill. Unless they already have similar laws for dogs and cats, I think you should lobby the city council to enact a similarly restrictive ordinance that details dog and cat house structure, permission from neighbors, licensing fees and appearance. Don't forget to require litterbox and yard cleaning twice daily as is done for coop cleaning.

 

[animalluvur1450]

Wow, i know. I also have dogs and cats and there are no ordinances on them, except requiring that they be liscenced and leashed( no one follows that law anyway) . I don't even think that there is a noise ordinance. After meauring my yard this morning, I'm almost positive that I can't keep chickens in my backyard!

Its horrible! I think I'm going to try and talk to the city about it, and see if maybe the ordinances I found are outdated or something, beacuse city chickens are definetely on the rise. My neighbors' houses reach to the halfway mark of my small yard, and we have a garage that takes up a large portion of the back of our yard. If it wasn't there, I would defiinetely be able to fit chickens in. Both my neighbor and I would want to have chickens, but they are elderly and probably wouldn't be able to build a coop with all of those specifications. As I am writing this though, I realize that my neighbors could fit a coop in their yard, and maybe we could have some sort of agreement. They do have a younger son, and him and my father could build it, and work out the feeding and cleaning based on who is going to have more ownership of the chickens. How is that idea? I think its pretty good, especially since have a close relationship with our neighbors. We can give them some eggs and we could get some eggs, maybe that could work.

 

[theFox]

Quote:
X2

Although with my lot the only PITA thing about that ordinance is the requirement that the coop be four feet off the ground and the needing plans for approval.

Nothing like taking the fun out of building a coop without a plan.

 

[UrbanChick101]

We just got our ordinance passed this week. We have restrictions however, not that harsh. We have to have our coops/pens 10 feet away from property lines and atleast 25 feet away from thier house which is occupied. And it can't be peaced together, it has to look nice. Fortunately that makes garages excluded. Becareful of *sharing with a neighbor, its like loaning/borrowing money from/to family, someone may get disgruntled and a friendship be lost. Just be cautious and think it through. As judge Judy would say, have a signed legal contract. You may be able to get some ammendments made as chickens don't need to be up off the ground as a housing unit for a pigeon maybe. With exceptions for homing pigeons, maybe they would make other exceptions. If you are able to ask around and get more people onboard with you, you may have more luck going before your city council.

Good Luck..

 

[cass1776]

i live in a town with almost the same ridiculous rules.i think im going to get chickens anyway.who are they to tell us what we can and cant have in our yards.we all pay plenty for taxes and pay our bills.still you cant even have what you want on something that supposed to be your property

 

[GardenFae]

Just be careful, cass1776. You pay taxes in part because you're paying the gov't for use of the land. The government is allowed to take it back at any time for any reason, as long as they give what they think is a reasonable excuse. The 5th amendment states clearly that people shall not "be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation." (emphasis mine)

"Just compensation" is, of course, decided on a case-by-case basis. It's probably more complicated than just coming in and seizing your land outright for owning chickens, especially as state and local laws are usually piled on top of the constitution, but still... it's not YOUR land in the sense that it's yours no matter what. It's yours as long as you pay your taxes, comply with regulations and aren't in the way of a gov't project.

Besides, the regulations are in place for a reason. As ridiculous as they may be, someone thought they were necessary and the best way to change minds isn't to break the rules first and explain later, unless you happen to be starring in a sitcom... it's far better that you go to your local zoning board and use examples from other cities and other land disagreements to prove your point legally, clearly, and without putting yourself and your land in the line of fire. Ordinances CAN be changed by concerned citizens... you just have to work at it!