Politics & Government

Feathers May Fly Tonight: City Meeting on Backyard Chickens ... and Goats, Bees, Other Critters

City officials will hold a community meeting tonight for El Cerrito residents to learn about and give feedback on a proposed new law to allow the keeping of animals usually found in barnyards.

El Cerrito could soon be more like Old MacDonald's farm, except for the roosters, if a proposed new animal law is adopted.

The law would allow hens (if they'll willing to be celibate), goats, bees, pigs and other creatures, subject to varying conditions.

Current law imposes difficult obstacles for those who'd like their own backyard honey or fresh eggs.

Find out what's happening in El Cerritowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"This is a very restrictive code," city Development Services Manager Jennifer Carman said of the existing law.

In response to community interest in easing the restrictions, city staff along with the Planning Commission and citizens' Environmental Quality Committee have been hashing out a more permissive approach over the past 15 months.

Find out what's happening in El Cerritowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"What we've heard most about are chickens, goats and bees," Carman said.

Now the city wants to hear from a broader range of the community and is holding a public meeting tonight at 7, Tuesday, Aug. 31, at City Hall.

Under the proposed rules for chickens, for example, residents could keep up to four hens, but no roosters, on a standard-sized lot. They would have to be in enclosed areas, and coops would need to be 20 feet from dwellings or adjacent lots.

Permission would be granted by obtaining an administrative, over-the-counter use permit for a small fee that has not yet been determined, Carman said.

Residents can have chickens under current law, as long as they're no heavier than half a pound, which largely rules out most chickens except bantam-weight varieties in their first year. Current law also allows larger chickens with a use permit from the Planning Commission, which is expensive, time-consuming to apply for, and subject to discretionary approval.

The new law, as currently proposed, would allow two beehives on standard-sized lots (5,000-plus square feet) with an administrative, over-the-counter permit. Current law allows bees only with a use permit approved by the Planning Commission.

The rules for pigs, goats and other animals vary and can be found on the city's website.

Both the Planning Commission and the Environmental Quality Committee have recommended relaxing the rules for keeping animals, though there was some disagreement over specific regulations, Carman said.

The proposed law may still be revised before it goes before the City Council for approval.


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