HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The new chicken ordinance has not yet come home to roost in the Salt City.
After questions from the public, Hutchinson City Manager Kendal Francis said this week that any changes will come as part of the larger update of all the city's planning and zoning regulations in April.
Late last year, planning consultant Matt Williams was asked to look at the specific language to clarify that the amount of chickens, that the board hopes can be kept between eight and 20, can be restricted by the amount of area with proper fencing, rather than simply by the square footage of the lot entirely. If approved as proposed, then chickens would be allowed in the R-2, R-3, R-4, R-5, R-6 and MH districts.
All chickens must be kept within a fenced part of a yard and provided with appropriate shelter. All chicken coops, hen houses and other structures used to house chickens must be kept neat in appearance and in sanitary condition.
All chicken coops, hen houses and other structures used to house chickens must be set back a minimum of 10 feet from side lots, 5 feet from rear lot line and 50 feet from any adjacent residential dwelling, church, school or business that is outside of the owner’s property lines and shall not project closer to the front or side street than the principal structure.
No roosters shall be kept, and no public slaughtering or processing of chickens allowed.
Owners can also apply for an additional permit if they are raising chickens for their own food.
Anyone keeping chickens improperly and found to allow chickens to run from their property and damage the property of their neighbors will be subject to action pursuant to Chapter 7 of the City Code.
The zoo, veterinarians and the State Fairgrounds are exempt from the proposed regulations.
Again, those regulations will be part of a larger package of changes to come before the City Council, most likely in April.
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