Work continues on Sturgis urban chicken ordinance
STURGIS — Work on fine-tuning an ordinance covering the keeping of urban chickens in the city of Sturgis continues.
The Sturgis City Planning Commission on Tuesday examined the proposed wording for the ordinance in the works. The keeping of urban chickens has been driven by residents for more than a decade.
The idea was first presented to the city in 2011, then again in 2021. Two years ago, the proposal died without support at a city commission meeting. With higher interest in sustainability post-COVID-19 and several new commissioners since 2021, the matter is being revisited.
Officials during the latest planning commission meeting went through the ordinance wording line-by-line, talking about structures, how many chickens would be allowed, costs for permits and fines for offenses and being out of compliance. A first offense would be assessed a fine of $100. A second offense would be $200 and additional offenses would be $300.
An initial permit application fee as drafted was set at $150. Permit renewal would be $75. An additional inspection fee would be $50.
The matter is set to be brought back to the planning commission next month, with a public hearing to be called as part of the process. From there, it will advance to the city commission for consideration. The city commission has mulled the idea of either voting on the proposal at its meeting, or placing the issue on the ballot for voters to decide on how to proceed.
Those for having chickens in town say doing so will provide food through eggs, and teach responsibility for children. Those against allowing chickens cite concerns about smell and that chickens are not meant for city environments.
This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Work continues on Sturgis urban chicken ordinance
