MONROE - The city has set a public hearing date for Feb. 17 on a newly drafted ordinance to allow residents to keep chickens within city limits.
The draft was recommended to council by the Judiciary and Ordinance Review Committee, which approved the wording earlier this week.
Currently, chickens are designated as a barnyard animal and are not allowed within the city. But in September, a group of Monroe residents asked the city to change the rule so they could keep chickens for their own enjoyment and use.
The ordinance draft says chickens are not allowed, but can be obtained through a permit application. A permit would allow for up to six female chickens. No roosters will be allowed. The chickens must be housed in the rear yard of the residence, and must be kept within a coop and a chicken run. Neither the run nor the coop can be located within 10 feet of any property line. They also cannot be placed within 25 feet of any livable dwelling located on a neighbor's property.
Ordinance language specifies that all equipment and buildings for chickens be kept "clean, dry, odor free and in a sanitary condition at all times." The coop also has to be resistant to mice and predators, such as feral cats or raccoons. Chickens would only be allowed outside of the coop during daylight hours, and the structure itself has to allow 4 square feet per chicken.
The public hearing will be held during the scheduled Common Council meeting at City Hall.
The draft was recommended to council by the Judiciary and Ordinance Review Committee, which approved the wording earlier this week.
Currently, chickens are designated as a barnyard animal and are not allowed within the city. But in September, a group of Monroe residents asked the city to change the rule so they could keep chickens for their own enjoyment and use.
The ordinance draft says chickens are not allowed, but can be obtained through a permit application. A permit would allow for up to six female chickens. No roosters will be allowed. The chickens must be housed in the rear yard of the residence, and must be kept within a coop and a chicken run. Neither the run nor the coop can be located within 10 feet of any property line. They also cannot be placed within 25 feet of any livable dwelling located on a neighbor's property.
Ordinance language specifies that all equipment and buildings for chickens be kept "clean, dry, odor free and in a sanitary condition at all times." The coop also has to be resistant to mice and predators, such as feral cats or raccoons. Chickens would only be allowed outside of the coop during daylight hours, and the structure itself has to allow 4 square feet per chicken.
The public hearing will be held during the scheduled Common Council meeting at City Hall.