Plan Commission debates raising chicken limit, asks applicant to revise ordinance language

Village of Cross Plains Plan Commission members spent a large portion of their Nov. 3 meeting discussing proposed amendments to the village's chickens-and-ducks rule (listed in the packet as "Orten's 21.11"). A resident who said she and her family own 10 chickens asked the commission to remove or increase the current six-bird limit after receiving a complaint about the flock.

Commissioners and staff reviewed research presented by residents and referenced model ordinances from neighboring jurisdictions. Commissioners summarized common benchmarks: interior coop space of roughly 426 square feet per bird and exterior space of about 82—0 square feet per bird; other communities limit numbers by acreage (e.g., 42— hens under an acre, larger allowances over an acre) or use a coop-size formula. Several commissioners said the existing numeric cap (6) came from earlier community input and the Humane Society's recommendations but asked for a clearer, enforceable standard.

The discussion repeatedly focused on enforceability. Commissioners said objective tests (a numeric cap or a simple coop-square-foot formula) make enforcement and zoning administration simpler, while open-ended phrases such as "humane care" or "protect public health" need explicit benchmarks to be enforceable by village staff and not left to ad hoc judgment. Commissioners also raised nuisance concerns (odor, noise, volume of egg production if numbers are high) and said they want to avoid creating a production-style flock in single-family neighborhoods.

No final vote was taken on the ordinance language. The applicant agreed to revise the draft to clarify: the numeric limit or formula to be used, indoor/outdoor coop-sizing metrics, and the targeted wording in section b (removing an explicit 6-bird cap if a workable alternative is provided). Staff and commissioners requested the applicant return with a revised draft for a public hearing at the next plan commission meeting. Direct regulatory language and numeric caps will be required for any enforcement standard the village adopts.

Quotes (attributed to speakers identified in the meeting record): "I don't want her to make the decide if it's humane care or not," Commissioner Cree said while discussing enforcement. "Once you start getting up ... 12 chickens ... that's almost a production," another commissioner said, describing concerns about higher bird counts.

A next step was agreed: the applicant will modify the ordinance language and staff will place the item on the agenda for a noticed public hearing at the commission's next meeting. The commission did not adopt any ordinance changes on Nov. 3.