Batavia council to talk chickens again

Batavia authorities are ready to start talking again about chickens.

The city council’s city services committee will discuss whether residents should be allowed to raise cluckers in their backyards, at a meeting at 7:30 p.m. at the Batavia Government Center, 100 N. Island Ave.

Two residents presented a proposal last summer, requesting permission for the practice. Chicken-raising is au courant among people who prefer to eat foods raised close to their homes and without drugs or hormones. The duo researched existing coops in the city to see how clean the owners kept them, whether there were offensive smells, and what neighbors thought of the practice.

The two women asked that Batavia allow residents to raise up to eight hens, but no roosters. Coops and runs should be located at least 20 feet from any buildings, they suggested.

Current Batavia law prohibits chicken coops within 200 feet of any building used as a residence, other than the owner’s. That law was adopted in 1991.

Administrative staff put off researching the topic to concentrate on other matters in the fall, including developing a downtown streetscape plan, working on the city’s 2011 budget and investigating using new home-rule powers to regulate rental housing.

It did, however, solicit comments from residents via e-mail. Of 66 who submitted comments, about 20 were against the idea, according to a memo distributed to the committee.

Geneva prohibits raising chickens in the city. St. Charles allows them.