Township hatches chicken ordinance
Officials debate keeping chickens in municipalities
LOWER SALFORD >> Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to its new home in Lower Salford.
A new ordinance unanimously approved at the April 7 Lower Salford Township Board of Supervisors meeting allows chickens to be raised on smaller properties.
Before that, anyone who wanted to legally raise chickens had to live on at least a three-acre tract.
“I’m very egg-cited,” board Chairman Doug Gifford punned following the board vote.
Under the new rules, up to three chickens can be raised on properties of 15,000 square-feet (about one-third of an acre) and up to five chickens on a 45,000 square-foot property. The rules for the number allowed on properties of more than three acres remain the same as before.
Those may not be the final numbers, though.
After the ordinance was prepared, some people suggested increasing the number of chickens allowed, along with other possible changes, so the new ordinance could soon be revised, board members said.
“We may not have gotten the numbers right right off the bat,” board member Chris Canavan said. “We’re willing to listen and open it up but it was a starting point.”
The planning commission is expected to discuss possible revisions in May, with the recommendations then being brought back to the supervisors for that board’s vote.
“I just want to say that it seems unreasonable that we can put 10 houses on five acres of property, but you can’t have 10 chickens,” one resident said.
“None of what we’re trying to do here is to take away. We’re trying to add to what people can do,” Canavan said.
The issue is balancing the number of chickens allowed with the impact on neighboring properties, he said.
The ordinance, which follows recommendations from the Montgomery County Planning Commission, prohibits roosters because of noise from early morning crowing, James Garrity, the township’s solicitor said. He joked that his only concern was the possibility of a discrimination lawsuit on behalf of roosters.
The possibility of allowing roosters in some cases under the new ordinance, depending on the size of the property, could be considered along with the other possible changes, Canavan said.
The new ordinance applies to properties on which the primary use is residential, not agricultural, Zoning Officer Michael Beuke said in a follow-up telephone interview.
It specifically mentions roosters in the new section, he said, but the township rules for raising agricultural animals do not, instead using the terms poultry or fowl, which includes roosters. Roosters are allowed on agricultural properties, but there are also rules that the keeping of animals on those properties cannot create a nuisance to abutting properties, he said.
Chicken coops and chicken runs are required under the new ordinance.
A township permit is also required.
“The permit would be for the installation of the structure itself, not for the chickens, because there’s setback requirements for property lines. This would be akin to a shed permit,” Township Manager Joe Czajkowski said in answer to a resident’s question about the permit.
Board member Kevin Shelly said he received several comments on the chicken ordinance and was grateful for the feedback from residents.
“I’ve learned more about chickens these past few months than I ever thought was possible, and I’ve enjoyed during so,” he said. “I’ve learned from many of you how keeping livestock is more of a lifestyle than a hobby.”
In another matter at the meeting, Holly Hosterman, assistant to the township manager, said the Lower Salford Historical Society and Heckler Plains Folklife Society are planning to hold all their events this year.
“Those events are the usual ones which were not happening last year due to Covid, unfortunately, but this year we’re looking forward to a better year,” she said.
The next event will be the Herbfest, during which participants can buy, sell or swap plants. It will be at Heckler Plains Farmstead 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 1, she said.