HomeMy Public PortalAboutORD-CC-2009-01ORDINANCE #2009-01
AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND TITLE 17.00, ZONING, WITH THE ADDITION OF A NEW
CHAPTER 17.52, KEEPING LIMITED NUMBERS OF FOWL, SPECIFICALLY HEN
CHICKENS FOR EGGS AND ESTABLISHING MAINTENANCE STANDARDS
WHEREAS, the Moab City Council ("Council') adopted Title 17.00.00, also known as "The
Zoning Ordinance of Moab City, Utah" on May 19, 1954, in an effort to encourage and facilitate
orderly growth and development, promote a more attractive and wholesome environment, and
to protect the public health, safety and general welfare; and,
WHEREAS, the City, from time to time, has found it necessary and desirable to amend the
regulations and requirements of Title 17.00 to remain current with changing elements of society
and contemporary planning; and,
WHEREAS, the City has been approached to allow a limited numbers of chickens to be housed
on properties located in residential areas to serve as a food source and to enhance efforts of
local sustainability; and,
WHEREAS, hens have provided food for consumption by property owners on a non-commercial
basis in limited zoning districts of Moab for many years; and,
WHEREAS, eggs that are locally raised for personal consumption are significantly more
healthful and taste better than factory -farm raised eggs, and are a part of the sustainable
lifestyle; and
WHEREAS, backyard and urban chickens eat noxious weeds and insects; and
WHEREAS, chicken fecal matter can be a rich source of fertilizer and a positive addition to soils
and;
WHEREAS, numerous other local jurisdictions have adopted regulations for the legalization of
responsible raising of backyard hen chicken; and
WHEREAS, the citizens of Moab value their desire and ability to sustain their families with food
produced from their own property, gardens and fruit trees; and,
WHEREAS, the City of Moab Planning Commission held a duly advertised public hearing on
February 12, 2009, to hear and consider testimony in support and opposition of amending the
text of the Code to allow the keeping of limited numbers of hen chickens in all residential zones
and for residential uses in commercial zones; and,
WHEREAS, the Planning Commission, after consideration and review of the submitted
testimony, favorably recommended that Council approve Ordinance #2009-01; and,
Ordinance #2009-01 Page 1 of 6
WHEREAS, Council, in a regularly scheduled open meeting, considered the public testimony
and the recommendations of the Planning Commission and City Staff in reviewing the keeping
of chickens in limited numbers within Moab City Limits; and,
WHEREAS, Council has determined that the keeping of chickens in limited numbers is an
acceptable activity in residential zones and as a permitted activity for residential uses located in
commercial zones and is in keeping with the objectives and characteristics of the General Plan
and Council Sustainability Resolution No. 37-2008 adopted on December 9, 2008.
NOW, THEREFORE, the Moab City Council hereby amends Title 17.00, Zoning, with the
addition of language to read:
Chapter 17.52
Keeping limited numbers of fowl for food production
Sections:
17.52.010 Intent
17.52.020 General Conditions
17.52.030 Prohibited Uses
17.52.040 Standards for Containment
17.52.050 Standards for Maintenance
17.52.060 Application for Permit
17.52.070 Enforcement/revocation of permit
17.52.080 Permit revocation, grounds
17.52.090 Permit revocation procedure, right to cure.
17.52.010 Intent.
This Chapter shall provide residents of the community the opportunity to maintain up to twelve
(12) hen chickens as pets and for the purpose of producing eggs, subject to the described
restrictions and regulations. The objective is to cultivate localized self- supporting and
sustainable behavior for the betterment of the local, regional, and world community.
17.52.020 General Conditions.
In all R-1, R-2, R-3, R-4 residential zones and Planned Unit Developments in the RA Zone of
the City of Moab, and only for those single-family residential uses in the commercial zones, up
to and not exceeding more than twelve (12) hen chickens for egg production as family food,
Ordinance #2009-01 Page 2 of 6
shall be allowed with the issuance of a permit from the city. This use is solely to allow hens per
household as pets and for the purpose of producing eggs, subject to the following restrictions:
17.52.030 Prohibited uses.
1. No roosters shall be allowed in the R-1, R-2, R-3, R-4, any commercial zone or in
Planned Unit Developments located in the RA-1 Zone. If chickens are purchased as
chicks and any are determined at a later date to be roosters, they shall be removed
immediately upon determination of gender;
2. Fighting chickens are not allowed as per Municipal Code Chapter 6.04.360.
3. Hen chickens shall not be raised for slaughter for commercial purposes;
17.52.040 Standards for containment
Hens shall be securely fenced and confined to the property of the owner with the use of
coops and yards, and not allowed to run at large;
1. Enclosures and coops shall be located at least fifteen (15) feet from neighboring
residences, kept clean and with no odors emanating across property lines;
2. Chicken yards shall provide a minimum outside area of 10 square feet per hen;
3. Coop areas shall provide a minimum of 4 square feet of habitable area per laying hen.
17.52.050
Standards for maintenance
1. Removal of dead birds.
a. The owner of any fowl that dies within city limits shall remove the carcass of
such animal from city limits within ten hours after its death.
2. No coop cleanings shall be stockpiled within twenty (20) feet of any dwelling or
any property line unless stored in a closed bin covered to prevent pest and insect
infestation or kept in a properly maintained compost pile.
3. No coop shall be kept in an unsanitary or improperly ventilated condition by any
coop owner, lessee or occupant of a property.
4. Diseased or sick birds shall be handled in such a manner as to not infect other
members of the coop.
17.52.060 Application for Permit
Ordinance #2009-01 Page 3 of 6
Any person intending to raise up to a total of twelve (12) domesticated hen chickens shall apply
for a permit to do so. The application form shall be provided by the Zoning Administrator and
shall include at a minimum:
a. Name and address of property owner and other contact information,
b. Address of subject property,
c. Name and contact information of occupant or renter if not the property owner,
d. The applicant shall provide a narrative and a site plan of the subject property to
adequately explain the location of the coop and other improvements on the lot. A non-
refundable fee as established by resolution of Council shall be submitted at the time of
application.
e. If the applicant is not the owner of the property on which the request for keeping
chickens is located, a letter from the owner, signed and notarized agreeing to the use is
required.
All chicken permits shall be renewed with the Zoning Administrator every two (2) years.
17.52.070 Enforcement
In the event that violations of this section occur, the complainant shall contact the Zoning
Administrator and shall file a complaint outlining the nature of the infraction(s) and the
time(s) that the violations(s) occurred. The property owner of the subject property shall be
notified in accordance with code Title 17.78, Zoning Violations, Penalties, and the
appropriate fines shall be in effect.
All violations of this chapter are classified as Class B Misdemeanors, punishable by a fine
not to exceed one thousand dollars or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period not to
exceed six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Each day of violation or
noncompliance shall constitute a separate offense and may be prosecuted accordingly.
17.52.080 Permit revocation, grounds
A permit to keep chickens may be revoked at the discretion of the Zoning Administrator if
any of the following occurs:
1. Three complaints are submitted from a neighborhood within a period of one
month where definite violations of the above described standards have occurred;
2. Failure to correct violations within an allowed time period not to exceed twenty-
one (21) days;
3. A rooster is kept on the premises in violation of the restrictions for roosters;
4. False, inaccurate, or misleading statements by the applicant in the application
for a chicken permit, or any supporting documentation;
Ordinance #2009-01 Page 4 of 6
5. The use of the permit for commercial sale of eggs or poultry meat products.
17.52.090 Permit revocation procedure, right to cure.
A. Prior to revocation, the Zoning Administrator shall issue a written notice of violation,
which notice shall describe the nature of the violation and permit the licensee a period of
not less than twenty one (21) business days in which to correct or abate the violation.
The abatement period may be extended by action of the City Manager upon a showing
of good cause. The notice shall also inform the permitee that the permit will be revoked
not less than twenty one business days from the date of notice if violation is not
corrected within the period.
B. The notice shall be personally served or delivered by certified mail or first-class mail
to the last known address of the permit holder. The permit holder shall be entitled to
request a hearing by delivering a written request to the Zoning Administrator any time
prior to the effective date of the license revocation, as stated in the notice of
violation. Failure to timely request a hearing shall be a waiver of the right to a
hearing. Timely request for a hearing shall result in the revocation being stayed
until completion of the hearing.
C. Hearings shall be informal and presided over by the City Manager. The permit
holder shall be allowed to offer evidence or testimony in support of his/her
position. Should the testimony, documents, or other evidence establish a
violation the permit shall be immediately revoked. If the infractions are corrected
after revocation has taken place, a new application and fee shall be submitted by
the former permit holder to the Zoning Administrator for review.
D. Following an informal hearing before the city manager, a person aggrieved by
a revocation may appeal the decision by delivering written notice of same within
ten business days of the notice of decision. Timely notice of appeal will result in
stay of the revocation pending the appeal hearing. Appeals shall be heard by the
City Council no later than ten business days from the delivery of notice of appeal.
The council may sustain or overturn the decision.
E. Any person violating a revocation decision shall be subject to the remedies
and penalties as described in Section 17.52.070.
AND THAT, Council hereby repeals Item D. of Subsection 6.04.480, Barns and stables, that
currently reads;
"D. No chicken coop, house, pen, or any other structure used for the containment of
fowl, including pigeons, except for household pets, shall be kept or maintained at a distance
closer than one hundred feet from the door or windows of any dwelling other than the dwelling
of the animal owner or caretaker."
Ordinance #2009-01 Page 5 of 6
AND, THAT, Council also amends the language of Chapter 17.06, Definitions, with the addition
of the following definitions that shall read:
"Coop, chicken" (also coop, henhouse, hen coop) a structure for housing poultry that
provides shelter from the elements, rodents, hungry predators, theft, and injury and that consists
of at least four (4) square feet of habitable area per laying hen. Coops may have an open front
or may be draft free with ventilation openings such as windows.
"Fowl" When applied to Code Chapter 17.52, specifically references a domesticated hen
"chicken" that is used as food or for laying eggs but does not include any of the other various
heavy -bodied largely ground -feeding domestic or game birds of the order Galliformes, such as a
duck, goose, turkey, or pheasant, that is used for food or hunted as game.
*AND, FURTHERMORE, THAT, item G in Chapter 17.54.020, Use requirements for the RA-1
Zone would be amended to read:
G. Barns, corrals, pens, coops, sheds and feed storage buildings for the keeping of
animals and fowl and the storage of farm products; provided, however, that uses for the care
and keeping of livestock and fowl are located at least one hundred feet distance from any
existing dwelling and one hundred feet from the front property lines. In Residential Planned Unit
Developments located in the RA-1 Zone, fowl kept for non-commercial egg production is
allowed under the provisions of Chapter 17.52, Keeping limited numbers of fowl for food
production
PASSED AND APPROVED in open Council by a majority vote of the Governing
Body of Moab 7 Council on Main LQ, 2009.
SIG
David L. Sakrison, Mayor
01/l
Rachel Ellison, Recorder
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