What does this mean?

[ChickForLife]

50 might be the max?

It is the max without a permit.

 

[ChickForLife]

Do you have more than just this chart?

I'm reading it has 50, plus 10 more per 0.2 acre of land. Like my ordinance is 3 up to 1/2 acre, then after that 1 chicken per sq ft of housing (so on an acre you could have thousands, basically). But I could be reading it wrong. It'd be 50 at the very least from how this is worded.

Here...

http://townofreddingct.org/app/uploads/2015/01/Redding-Zoning-Regulations-revised-to-7.30.14.pdf

 

[ChickForLife]

Forget the chart. What does the statute say???

NEVER EVER EVER read a Statute out of context, or worse, read only part of a Statute. About the only greater mistake you can make is using a modern dictionary definition to interpret a word in isolation, written at some point in the distant past. (With apologies to the current Supreme Court who is not Last because they are Right, but Right because they are Last).

Lewis Carrol's Humpty Dumpty offered instruction on statutory interpretation we should make every effort to avoid.

"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less." "The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things." "The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master—that's all."

Where do I find the statute?

 

[rosemarythyme]

It is the max without a permit.

Thanks for clarifying. It's hard to tell with only the chart to go by, since some areas do have upward scaling numbers.

 

[ChickForLife]

Here...

http://townofreddingct.org/app/uploads/2015/01/Redding-Zoning-Regulations-revised-to-7.30.14.pdf

The farming area is at 5.14. I don't know how to read much of this.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

The link to the Town of Reddington (I assume that's where you live) gives 138 pages of Statutes. What this says -

Is that IF you are in a "Residential" Zoning, **OR** an "OR" zoning; **AND** on the portion of your lot designated for the raising of livestock (NOT your total lot area) you have more than 50 poultry (of 3 month age or older) **OR** more than 10 birds per .2 acre; **THEN** you need a Land Management Plan approved by the Zoning Commission.

You should also read page 108 regarding permitted uses, and depending upon the size of the structures you intend to create, site grading, timber clearing, and the like may require additional permitting. You need to be aware of your set offs (generally 50 ft from property lines and from water sources) in establishing your operation.

But yes, if you have at least an acre established for your poultry op, and you have not more than 50 birds of 3 months age or greater, its a permitted operation without need for planning review. Your buildings, site clearing, etc may still require it however. Likewise if you plan to sell on site, beyond a certain square footage. Your signage and lighting are also (somewhat) limited.

Hope that helps.

 

[ChickForLife]

The link to the Town of Reddington (I assume that's where you live) gives 138 pages of Statutes. What this says -
View attachment 2513612

Is that IF you are in a "Residential" Zoning, **OR** an "OR" zoning; **AND** on the portion of your lot designated for the raising of livestock (NOT your total lot area) you have more than 50 poultry (of 3 month age or older)OR more than 10 birds per .2 acre; THEN you need a Land Management Plan approved by the Zoning Commission.

You should also read page 108 regarding permitted uses, and depending upon the size of the structures you intend to create, site grading, timber clearing, and the like may require additional permitting. You need to be aware of your set offs (generally 50 ft from property lines and from water sources)in establishing your operation.

But yes, if you have at least an acre established for your poultry op, and you have not more than 50 birds of 3 months age or greater, its a permitted operation without need for planning review. Your buildings, site clearing, etc may still require it however. Likewise if you plan to sell on site, beyond a certain square footage. Your signage and lighting are also (somewhat) limited.

Hope that helps.

Yes it does, thank you! Does the amount of roosters I have matter and if neighbors complain will I have to "stop my operation"?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Yes it does, thank you! Does the amount of roosters I have matter and if neighbors complain will I have to "stop my operation"?

No, there is no limitation on the number of roosters you can have, and while they do have a noise/nuisance ordinance, it bumps up against State and Federal Law, particularly 'Right to Farm' statutes (summary, with link to the statute itself), which limits (legally) how much teeth your neighbor's complaints can interfere with your operation, usually by reference to compliance with generally acceptable commercial standards of farming operations...

How much it limits, and how they interact, would require the advice of a Lawyer. I am NOT a Lawyer. I do not pretend at being a lawyer. I have not been admitted to the Bar in any of the 50 States, the US Territories, or any foreign countries. I should further add that "nuisance" law is notoriously vague, and even if they can't legally stop you from having chickens (including roosters), they can still use the complaint, review, inspection process to make your life a living hell, particularly if they are in good with the local bureaucracy or county judge.

and all of that can be trumped by the EPA. Particularly if they attempt to re-adopt the 2015 "Waters of the United States" rule which SCOTUS sort of ruled on in 2018, which was then replaced in 2019 with a new Rule (which the current Administration has already indicated it wants to change) *and* if your property has standing water upon it during any period of the year, *or* drains into any watershed which eventually reaches a navigable waterway.

The good news is that the rule won't change tomorrow -or if it does, it will almost certainly be found to be an illegal change under the APA (Administrative Procedures Act) which requires a notice and comment period before any Federal Agency adopts a significant change in the interpretation of its empowering statutes and authorities. The notice and comment period typically takes years, which is why there was a 2018 decision on a 2015 rule that the Administration indicated it wanted to change in 2016, but couldn't legally accomplish till 2019...

Government, got to love it. Or something.

 

[ChickForLife]

No, there is no limitation on the number of roosters you can have, and while they do have a noise/nuisance ordinance, it bumps up against State and Federal Law, particularly 'Right to Farm' statutes (summary, with link to the statute itself), which limits (legally) how much teeth your neighbor's complaints can interfere with your operation, usually by reference to compliance with generally acceptable commercial standards of farming operations...

How much it limits, and how they interact, would require the advice of a Lawyer. I am NOT a Lawyer. I do not pretend at being a lawyer. I have not been admitted to the Bar in any of the 50 States, the US Territories, or any foreign countries. I should further add that "nuisance" law is notoriously vague, and even if they can't legally stop you from having chickens (including roosters), they can still use the complaint, review, inspection process to make your life a living hell, particularly if they are in good with the local bureaucracy or county judge.

and all of that can be trumped by the EPA. Particularly if they attempt to re-adopt the 2015 "Waters of the United States" rule which SCOTUS sort of ruled on in 2018, which was then replaced in 2019 with a new Rule (which the current Administration has already indicated it wants to change) *and* if your property has standing water upon it during any period of the year, *or* drains into any watershed which eventually reaches a navigable waterway.

Thank you so much! You have been a huge help!

 

[U_Stormcrow]

heh. I'm just a guy with odd reading habits. Good luck on your chicken journey.