By CECILIA FOX
Record Herald Writer
Courtesy of the Record Herald; Printed on 9.9.12
TIPP CITY – At its latest meeting, the zoning code update steering committee delved deeper into the section of code that deals with accessory uses like home businesses and keeping chickens.
The group met again on Tuesday with Wendy Moeller of Compass Point Planning to discuss in more detail accessory uses, which, Moeller explained, can be one of the most challenging aspects of zoning codes.
“There’s a lot of gray area,” Moeller said.
At the Aug. 21 meeting, the committee discussed allowing Tipp City residents to keep chickens in their backyards. On Tuesday, the committee revisited the subject. The provision, which is tentatively included, allows only four chickens to a lot no smaller than 8,000 feet. The chickens must be provided with a covered enclosure and kept within a fenced area at all times.
The chicken coop must be 25 feet away from any houses. Keeping roosters is prohibited, keeping the noise to a minimum, which is a reason many communities are hesitant to allow chickens.
“From the notes and comments I got from people, I had some that said, “Why would we want to do this?”, and I had others that said, “Yeah, that’s fine. Why wouldn’t we want to do this?”” Moeller said.
Tipp City currently prohibits keeping farm animals in residential areas, which is standard practice in most cities. But keeping chickens is a growing trend in the U.S., which is causing many other cities to consider allowing backyard chicken coops. Yellow Springs allows chickens in residential areas, but after much debate, the city of Beavercreek recently ruled against it.
“A lot of the zoning is not for you but because of your neighbors. I always say, how would you like it if your neighbor had chickens? Or had seven cars in the front yard?” councilman Joe Gibson said. “I think if you were to ask anyone in this room or in this town, “Would you want to have a chicken ranch or a chicken coop, even if there’s only three or four, next door to you?” I don’t think there’s a single person that would say, “Sure, why not?””
Councilman Bryan Budding, who attended the meeting, said that he doesn’t care what his neighbor does, so long as he does it on his side of the fence. City Planner Matt Spring said he would prefer it if the provision were taken out, not because he doesn’t like the idea, but because it creates a potential for nuisance problems that the city will have to deal with. He also said that he’s heard from three interested residents who would like to keep chickens.
“My job here is to bring you the trends that we’re seeing in the great world of planning and zoning,” Moeller said.
She explained that, when it comes to allowing chickens or other growing sustainability trends like community gardens (another new provision in the code), there are no right or wrong answers. No definitive action was taken by the committee regarding the chicken provision.
The committee also discussed home occupations, accessory dwelling units, and solar panels, as well as where outdoor sales displays can be located. Accessory dwelling units, sometimes known as mother-in-law cabins, are an accessory use allowed in the revised code. These secondary apartments must have a separate entrance, kitchen and bathroom from the main dwelling and there may be only one per lot. The unit cannot exceed 800 square feet and its design should complement the main house.
The section on home occupations was revised and a list of prohibited occupations was added. A home occupation must clearly be the secondary use of the home and cannot take up more than 25 percent of the floor area of the house. Employees who do not live in the home are not permitted and advertising is limited to one sign no larger than two square feet attached flush to the wall of the home.
The new list of prohibited uses includes medical clinics, machine shops, fitness facilities, auto repair, and animal hospitals. Storing or dispatching vehicles from the home is also prohibited. For example, running a taxi service from home where all the cars are stored or dispatched from the residence is not allowed. The code specifies that home occupations must be conducted entirely within the home. However, taking company cars home from work is permitted.
Last November, Tipp City hired Moeller and Compass Point Planning to assist the city with the first comprehensive zoning and subdivision code update since 1993. The project is currently in the third of four phases, the drafting phase, which is expected to be complete in October of this year.
The fourth and final phase is the adoption phase which involves public hearing and should take place this winter. Anyone interested in the changes being made can keep up with the process on the city’s website at http://www.tippcityohio.gov/co
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