A hot topic: chickens in the city

Residents continue to petition their cities to allow the keeping of chickens in residential zones, and while the fowls get the back burner in some cities, other cities want to know more.

Earlier this year, the Clearfield, Sunset and Springville city councils voted against allowing chickens.

Midvale and Provo have voted for them in certain areas.

The Layton City Council is expected to vote on the matter, as well.

The Ogden Planning Commission recently voted against allowing homeowners to keep chickens in the city's residential zones. The vote is a negative recommendation to the Ogden City Council, which is expected to vote on the topic sometime in November.

Wednesday, the Centerville Planning Commission asked its city staff to draft an ordinance that could come before the public and receive debate.

In Ogden, city staff had recommended a no vote on the birds because the city's average lot size is between 5,000 and 6,000 square feet, said Greg Montgomery, the city's planning manager.

Chickens were allowed in Ogden manufacturing zones between 1951 and 1984, and the city doesn't even have an agricultural zone, where most cities allow chickens to be kept, Montgomery said.

In Centerville, the Planning Commission received a report from community development director Cory Snyder about cities that allow the keeping of chickens and why so many cities seem to be considering ordinances regarding them.

Snyder said a Centerville resident asked the commission to consider chickens, and the commission has now asked for a draft ordinance.

The ordinance, which could be presented in an upcoming meeting, could discuss the number of chickens allowed, in which residential zone they would be permitted, whether roosters would be allowed, what containment would be required, how the city would enforce its rules and whether residents would be required to have a permit to keep the fowls.

"It's an interesting debate as urbanization takes you away from the farm," Snyder said. "Some feel a little bit of the farm can come back into the area."

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