City of Glendale, AZ to Allow Backyard Chickens!

We Did It!

In a unanimous decision on Tuesday, January 19, 2016 council instructed staff to create or change existing ordinance to allow backyard chickens. The support the council showed for this special item of interest was overwhelming to us. Each council member had something positive to say about backyard chicken keeping. With their support we knew we had made the right decision to push for allowing backyard chickens. Unless something unforeseen happens this will be approved.

Councilman Turner requested that there be a "Chicken Moratorium" while the city works out the details. His request was that unless chickens are reported as a nuisance that needs to be investigated (i.e., noise or odor complaints from the neighbors), that no chickens be "evicted" from the city. He also requested that this move in an expedited manner since the family that requested this has waited long enough.

We have waited close to 7 months for just this first step. We are on cloud 9 that we will be able to have backyard chickens again.

Now we have to wait for Planning and Zoning to create or change the existing ordinance. There is no telling how long this next step will take, however, staff was instructed by council to expedite this by several council members. Trust us, we will not let this slip through the cracks, we will be checking in regularly with council to make sure this is changed and finalized.

I’ve included the link for the workshop and the portion regarding backyard chickens starts at about 33 minutes in to the meeting: City of Glendale Council Workshop 1/19/2016

I’ve also included the link to the item number that includes the slide show that staff presented to council for anyone else wishing to try to change their city ordinance regarding backyard chickens: City of Glendale Council Workshop Minutes & Slide Show

This article was published on Thursday, January 21 regarding the council meeting on January 19th: Glendale Star Article

Another article published on Thursday, January 28 regarding backyard chickens in the Glendale Star, yes we are the homeowners that Mr. Turner is referring to in this article.

This doesn’t change existing HOA rules or bylaws that do not allow backyard chickens. Anyone who resides in an HOA will need to petition their HOA to allow backyard chickens. It has been done several times over the last few months with success.

Our next step is building a house and run for our next flock of hens and deciding what types of chickens to get, we have some ideas, but will do a bit more research.

We hope that you will follow us in our next adventure! We can't wait!

M & S
Uptown Grange