Cottonwood Heights planning commission forwards smaller chicken coop setbacks and added enforcement to council

Cottonwood Heights Planning Commission members on Nov. 5 (meeting date not specified in the record) voted to forward a recommendation to the City Council for a zoning text amendment (ZTA-25-004) that would reduce the minimum setback for chicken coops from neighboring dwellings from the current 40 feet to 25 feet and add an enforcement provision that could lead to revocation of chicken permits after repeated ordinance violations.

Planning staff described the proposal as a city-initiated amendment to “update chapter 8.13 chickens,” noting the current code requires a 40-foot setback from neighboring dwellings and contains no enforcement mechanism. Staff said the Salt Lake County Health Department commonly recommends setbacks of 25 to 35 feet and that the change would allow more residents with smaller lots to keep chickens while preserving recommended distances from neighboring dwellings. Staff recommended forwarding a recommendation of approval to the City Council.

Commission discussion produced two edits to the staff draft: changing a referenced requirement measured from the property line from 3 feet to 10 feet, and clarifying that enforcement actions may be initiated by observation as well as by complaint. A commissioner moved to forward a recommendation of approval with those changes; the motion was seconded and carried on a roll-call vote.

The commission’s roll call recorded the following votes on the motion to forward the recommendation: Commissioner Barnes — yes; Commissioner Shelton — yes; Commissioner Anderson — yes; Commissioner Mills — yes; Commissioner Polson — yes; Commissioner Steinman — yes. The commission forwarded the recommendation to the City Council for final action.

Staff noted the draft also included language allowing permit revocation after three ordinance violations; commissioners said including an observable-enforcement mechanism would help staff address potential noise or odor complaints more quickly. The record does not show a final ordinance text adopted by the council; the commission’s action is a recommendation to the City Council.

What happens next: the City Council will receive the commission’s recommendation and will take the final legislative action on the proposed zoning text amendment.