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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION – JANUARY 19, 2021 4 <br /> <br />Mayor Grant felt people wouldn’t be building chicken coops in March. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes noted that residents would order chicks in March to get them in the <br />spring. She agreed it depended on staff time. <br /> <br />Councilmember McClung said a number of residents that want to have chickens have contacted <br />him and told him that spring is crucial in planning. He would prefer to complete the ordinance as <br />early as possible. <br /> <br />Councilmember Scott said he isn’t willing to prioritize this over an economic project. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes asked if March was realistic as Council would want to see the <br />ordinance before it went before the Planning Commission. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holden noted that chickens can be purchased from April to September, but <br />agreed that planning projects with deadlines should come first. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant stated this ordinance is lower on the priority list and should be done as time allows. <br />He moved on to question number two: the number of hens allowed. <br /> <br />After discussion, Council agreed on allowing 3 hens and no roosters, with Councilmember <br />McClung requesting four to six hens and Councilmember Scott suggesting up to four. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant asked if chicken coops or runs should be permitted in any area of the yard besides <br />the rear yard. He asked for a description of a chicken run. <br /> <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla responded that a chicken run is the <br />area that the chickens can move about outside of the coop. They are generally fenced in and <br />roofed with netting. <br /> <br />After discussion, it was decided coops and runs should be located in the rear yard only, close to <br />and behind the dwelling. <br /> <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla presented questions five through <br />eight of the memo and were all answered as “yes” by the Council. <br /> <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla asked the final question from the <br />memo, should a coop count against the number and size of accessory structures onsite? <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes said a coop could be used for storage once they no longer want <br />chickens. <br /> <br />Councilmember Scott felt it would count against the total number of structures. <br /> <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla asked if Council was agreeable to <br />coop size of 50 square feet or should they leave that open ended for now? <br />