Backyard chickens given approval

It looks like chicken is back on the menu in Penn Hills.

On Monday night, council unanimously approved an ordinance to allow residents to have backyard chickens by applying for a special zoning exception. The approval follows council’s failure last month to accept a proposed ordinance that would have allowed all residents to keep chickens without requiring an exception.

On Monday, planning director Chris Blackwell presented the new ordinance that permits the keeping of chickens as a special exception available to homeowners in R-1, R-2, R-3 and C districts. The exception allows up to four hens per residence (including two-family dwellings), and roosters are not allowed.

To request consideration, residents must register with the Department of Code Enforcement, obtain a building permit for construction of a coop and build and maintain a coop according to specifications stated in the ordinance. Chicken coops must be located at least 25 feet from any occupied dwelling other than that of the owner. The coop must provide at least three square feet per chicken.

The ordinance sets out requirements for the storage of chicken feed, building materials for coops, and waste storage and removal. The ordinance prohibits the slaughter of chickens and the spreading of chicken manure except as a composted material.

Greg Swatchick of Gramac Lane, who last month opposed the chicken law, praised council’s approach, saying, “This is the right way to do it. All of the residents of Penn Hills can welcome this ordinance.”

Mayor Sarah Kuhn also endorsed the revised law. “This is why we have public meetings – to get input from those affected by the ordinances we pass. By doing this the government and the people have an outcome that works for everyone.”