Draft chapter 58: Urban Chickens

§ 58.03 Rules And Regulations

The 2026 draft's § 58.03 beside the current code's § 58.03: removed words are struck through, added words underlined.

Comparison with a draft: not adopted. The archive holds no public hearing, ordinance or vote adopting the recodified Code through the October 20, 2026 meeting packet. Until one is adopted, every page here compares the consolidated code with a draft that can still change: the revised draft with the October 6 changes is not in the archive.

A comparison with the August 2026 draft recodification prepared by Iowa Codification for the City. The draft has not been adopted and can still change; the current code (unofficial compilation) governs until a recodified Code is adopted. Matches between sections are made by machine from the texts and are reviewed where uncertain.

Wording changed minor wording (99% same words)

Notable changes

  • Amount or number: …No Permittee shall keep or harbor more than 6 Chickens 4 chickens on the Permitted Tract of Land. 2. No…

What changed

All Permittees permittees shall be subject to the following rules and regulations:
1. No Permittee permittee shall keep or harbor more than six (6) Chickens four chickens on the Permitted Tract permitted tract of Land. land.
2. No person shall keep or harbor any roosters on the Permitted Tract permitted tract of Land. land.
3. The Permittee permittee shall not engage in the breeding of Chickens chickens or other commercial activities on the Permitted Tract permitted tract of Land. land.
4. All Chickens chickens must be kept in an enclosure or fenced-in area at all times.
5. Chickens shall be secured in a henhouse or chicken tractor from dusk until dawn.
6. Enclosures. All enclosures located on a Permitted Tract permitted tract of land shall meet the following minimum requirements:
A. Enclosures shall be kept in a dry, odor-free odor-free, and sanitary condition at all times.
B. Henhouses, chicken tractors tractors, or other enclosures must provide adequate ventilation and must be impermeable to rodents, birds birds, and other animals.
C. Henhouses, chicken tractors tractors, or other enclosures must provide a minimum of four (4) square four-square feet per chicken while minimizing adverse impacts to other residents in the neighborhood.
D. Henhouses, chicken tractors tractors, or other enclosures shall be enclosed on all sides and shall have a roof and doors, which access shall be secured at night. All openings must be covered with predator and bird-proof material made of wire with less than one-inch openings.
E. Henhouses, chicken tractors tractors, or other enclosures shall be constructed of uniform materials and the roof shall have a uniform color and style of shingles or other coverings. Scrap metal and scrap lumber are prohibited materials.
F. Henhouses, chicken tractors tractors, or other enclosures shall be maintained and secure.
G. No henhouse, chicken tractor tractor, or other enclosure may be located in a required front or side yard.
H. Henhouses, chicken tractors tractors, or other enclosures may not be located within ten
(10)
10 feet from an adjoining property line and must be (5) five feet away from the principle permitted structure.
I. All enclosed chicken pens shall be made of sturdy wire fencing which is covered in wire, aviary netting netting, or solid roofing.
7. The slaughter of Chickens chickens on a Permitted Tract permitted tract of Land land shall be done in a humane and sanitary manner and not done in open to the view of any public area or adjacent property owned by another person.

Word-level comparison of the current text with the draft's; spacing and paragraph breaks come from the documents' text. Footnotes are left out.

Current code

§ 58.03 Rules And Regulations

All Permittees shall be subject to the following rules and regulations:

1. No Permittee shall keep or harbor more than six (6) Chickens on the Permitted Tract of Land.

2. No person shall keep or harbor any roosters on the Permitted Tract of Land.

3. The Permittee shall not engage the breeding of Chickens or other commercial activities on the Permitted Tract of Land.

4. All Chickens must be kept in an enclosure or fenced-in area at all times.

5. Chickens shall be secured in a henhouse or chicken tractor from dusk until dawn.

6. Enclosures. All enclosures located on a Permitted Tract of land shall meet the following minimum requirements:

A. Enclosures shall be kept in a dry, odor-free and sanitary condition at all times.

B. Henhouses, chicken tractors or other enclosures must provide adequate ventilation and must be impermeable to rodents, birds and other animals.

C. Henhouses, chicken tractors or other enclosures must provide a minimum of four (4) square feet per chicken while minimizing adverse impacts to other residents in the neighborhood.

D. Henhouses, chicken tractors or other enclosures shall be enclosed on all sides and shall have a roof and doors, which access shall be secured at night. All openings must be covered with predator and bird-proof material made of wire with less than one-inch openings.

E. Henhouses, chicken tractors or other enclosures shall be constructed of uniform materials and the roof shall have a uniform color and style of shingles or other coverings. Scrap metal and scrap lumber are prohibited materials.

F. Henhouses, chicken tractors or other enclosures shall be maintained and secure.

G. No henhouse, chicken tractor or other enclosure may be located in a required front or side yard.

H. Henhouses, chicken tractors or other enclosures may not be located within ten

(10) feet from an adjoining property line and must be (5) feet away from the principle permitted structure.

I. All enclosed chicken pens shall be made of sturdy wire fencing which is covered in wire, aviary netting or solid roofing.

7. The slaughter of Chickens on a Permitted Tract of Land shall be done in a humane and sanitary manner and not done in open to the view of any public area or adjacent property owned by another person.

Ord. 2021-482 · source page

2026 draft

§ 58.03 Rules And Regulations

All permittees shall be subject to the following rules and regulations:

1. No permittee shall keep or harbor more than four chickens on the permitted tract of land.

2. No person shall keep or harbor any roosters on the permitted tract of land.

3. The permittee shall not engage in the breeding of chickens or other commercial activities on the permitted tract of land.

4. All chickens must be kept in an enclosure or fenced-in area at all times.

5. Chickens shall be secured in a henhouse or chicken tractor from dusk until dawn.

6. Enclosures. All enclosures located on a permitted tract of land shall meet the following minimum requirements:

A. Enclosures shall be kept in a dry, odor-free, and sanitary condition at all times.

B. Henhouses, chicken tractors, or other enclosures must provide adequate ventilation and must be impermeable to rodents, birds, and other animals.

C. Henhouses, chicken tractors, or other enclosures must provide a minimum of four-square feet per chicken while minimizing adverse impacts to other residents in the neighborhood.

D. Henhouses, chicken tractors, or other enclosures shall be enclosed on all sides and shall have a roof and doors, which access shall be secured at night. All openings must be covered with predator and bird-proof material made of wire with less than one-inch openings.

E. Henhouses, chicken tractors, or other enclosures shall be constructed of uniform materials and the roof shall have a uniform color and style of shingles or other coverings. Scrap metal and scrap lumber are prohibited materials.

F. Henhouses, chicken tractors, or other enclosures shall be maintained and secure.

G. No henhouse, chicken tractor, or other enclosure may be located in a required front or side yard.

H. Henhouses, chicken tractors, or other enclosures may not be located within 10 feet from an adjoining property line and must be five feet away from the principle permitted structure.

I. All enclosed chicken pens shall be made of sturdy wire fencing which is covered in wire, aviary netting, or solid roofing.

7. The slaughter of chickens on a permitted tract of land shall be done in a humane and sanitary manner and not done in open to the view of any public area or adjacent property owned by another person.

August 2026 draft · page 142

Back to draft chapter 58 · All changes

Data last updated October 22, 2026. Built from the archive's documents; see how the data is built.