A member of Ann Arbor City Council in Michigan removes an egg out from a backyard chicken coop Friday, May 8, 2020, ahead of a discussion on allowing residents to own backyard chickens and ducks without the permission of their neighbors. Bethlehem City Council is set to vote Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2022, on whether to create a pilot program for keeping backyard chickens.Jenna Kieser file photo | For MLive.com

Bethlehem City Council is set to vote Tuesday night on whether to permit residents to keep backyard chickens.

The council on July 19 introduced the proposal, then council President Michael Colón announced at council’s meeting Aug. 2 that the vote on final approval would be delayed until this coming week’s meeting.

Council members during the meeting earlier this month agreed unanimously to Councilwoman Paige Van Wirt’s amendment to the proposed rules she had drafted, to limit the backyard chicken permits to 40 citywide.

Her intention is to issue the permits for a year so city officials can assess what kinds of problems the chickens present from the standpoints of health, nuisance and enforcement before the city potentially expands the number of permits available.

The proposal has not gained the endorsement of Mayor J. William Reynolds, who has maintained it should have been discussed at a council committee meeting before being introduced so his administration could voice its concerns.

He said during the Aug. 2 meeting residents have been calling about chicken permits, and amnesty for chickens being kept illegally. It comes at a time when the city’s health bureau is focusing on the continued threat of the coronavirus and the emerging threat of monkeypox, and when City Hall has 40 vacancies, Reynolds said. He referred to the day-to-day issues as “a lot of things on fire in this place” and 11s on a scale of one to 10, arguing that the push for backyard chickens without a committee discussion is not an 11.

“My feelings on chickens are not nearly what other people’s are,” the mayor said.

Council during the Aug. 2 meeting heard for a second straight meeting from residents unanimously in support of Van Wirt’s proposal. Keeping chickens is educational, offers a sustainable food source to battle food insecurity and supports urban agriculture, the proponents argued.

For a fee proposed at $25, residents could apply for a permit to keep up to six hens (or 10 if at least half the flock comprises smaller bantam chickens) inside a coop in the rear yard of a single family home or side-by-side home at least 20 feet from habitable structures, 25 feet from any street and at least 5 feet from any property line.

No slaughtering of chickens would be permitted. Additional regulations include ensuring the chickens always have access to feed and clean water while prohibiting nuisance conditions like foul odors, flies, vermin and excessive noise. Violations could result in fines or the forfeiture of the chickens.

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Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.

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