Fridley Council OKs Backyard Chickens

Fridley will have its first licensed resident chickens in decades after the city council approved a plan Monday for a chicken coop in a Gardena Avenue NE backyard.

City staff lavished praise on Sara Sangiovanni's application for a livestock license to keep six hens in an 18 square-foot coop and 60 square-foot fenced enclosure, or run.

Sangiovanni's plan is "one of the most complete and impressive sets of supporting materials that we have received from an applicant," according to the staff report, which recommended granting the license.

Chickens Already Allowed
Council Member Bob Barnette said the only similar license he could recall in more than two decades on the council was for pigeons. (The council tabled that license renewal until next meeting.)

Chickens are included under the definition of livestock in the city's code of ordinances. Larger animals must have an acre of land per head, but there is no stated limit on the number of chickens, Community Development Director Scott Hickok told the council.

The chickens are for egg-laying, not breeding, so the plan is not for an increase in number. Hickok said the license is subject to annual renewal process, and if the population increase to seven, the council could reject renewal on those grounds.

Hickok noted that the 300-foot-deep property backs onto Innsbruck Nature Center. The project is 30 feet from property lines to the side.

Googling Chicken Poop
The Fridley chickens had an easier time than in some parts of the Twin Cities where fowl have proved controversial. Still, it wasn't entirely clear sailing.

"I did Google 'chicken poop' last night," Council Member Ann Bolkcom said.

Sangiovanni reassured the council that good ventilation and cleaning at least once a week would control odors and prevent them from bothering neighbors. "We don't want to smell it either," she said.

"The bottom line is, just be neighborly," said Mayor Scott Lund.

"They will get free eggs," said Sangiovanni.