Abby to allow residents to keep five to eight chickens

Most Abbotsford residents will be able to keep up to five chickens at their homes under a new ordinance passed by the city council Monday.

The keeping of chickens on residential lots had long been debated by previous city officials, some of whom opposed the idea completely. However, with many new members of the council, the ordinance change was passed without any opposition at Monday’s regular monthly meeting.

According to the ordinance, up to five chickens would be allowed on lots of 20,000 square feet or less. One additional chicken may be kept for every extra 3,000 square feet of property space, up to a maximum of eight chickens.

Under the old ordinance, residents were limited to just two chickens, regardless of what sized lot they lived on. No permits were required, and the ordinance did not include any regulations for keeping the birds on residential lots.

Although the new ordinance allows for more birds, it also adds a permit requirement and other rules for those who want to harbor poultry on their premises. (Besides chickens, the ordinance also allows for ducks, doves, pigeons and quail).

To qualify for a permit, a resident will need to submit a site plan for their chicken coops, agree to regular inspections and pay a permit fee. The city clerktreasurer will determine whether the applicant has met the requirements for the permit, and any denials can be appealed to the city council.

Permits will be good for one year, annually expiring on Jan. 31, unless the permit-holder commits a “serious violation” or “multiple violations” of the rules established by the ordinance. A complaint filed by another citizen could touch off a permit revocation process.

The ordinance specifies minimum standards for chicken coops and pens, with an emphasis on adequate space, proper ventilation, and other designated features. No pen coop or pen will be allowed within 10 feet of a lot line or 25 feet from a neighboring house.

Rules for removal of manure and minimizing sound and odor are also included in the ordinance. No roosters are allowed except on properties that are at least 40,000 square feet, and the slaughtering of chickens may not be done outside or within public view.

The sale of eggs is permitted under the ordinance, but the keeping of poultry for sale or breeding purposes is prohibited.

Ald. Jeremiah Zeiset, who advocated for allowing more than two chickens, wondered if the council really wanted to implement the permit requirement and all of the other rules. Other council members preferred an ordinance that established regulations rather than just increasing the number of chickens allowed.

“If somebody’s not following the rules, we don’t have to allow them to continue,” said Ald. Lori Huther.

Other business

_ Mayor Jim Weix told the council he received one letter of interest from a Ward 4 resident interested in filling former Ald. Dennis Kramer’s seat on the council. He is expecting to get another letter before making his decision on who to appoint.

_ City administrator Josh Soyk told the council that the city’s official population, based on the 2020 census, is 2,502, with 1,854 residents in Clark County and 648 on the Marathon County side.

_ Resident Jim Colby spoke to the council about a letter he received from the city confirming that a connection from his sump pump has been installed to the storm sewer system. Colby said the letter was “misleading” because it made it seem like the city did all of the work.

“I was the one to dig a 40 foot by two foot deep trench,” he said. “I supplied all 50 feet of the drain tile. I also backhoed the trench and planted grass, even on the city right-of-way.”

However, Colby also acknowledged that the city dug 10 feet of trench, drilled a hole into a catch basin, and supplied 10 feet of yard drain and a 90-degree elbow.

_ After meeting in closed session, the council approved $3 hourly raises for DPW Craig Stuttgen and utility operator/ administrator Josh Soyk, bringing their wages to $33 per hour.

_ The council reappointed Claude Peissig to the Abbotsford Housing Authority for another five-year term.

_ The council approved a motion to advertise for a full-time deputy clerk-treasurer, with a starting pay range of $16 to $18 per hour depending on experience. The help wanted ad says the applicants “must have excellent public relation abilities, word processing and computer skills, and financial management abilities. Bilingual in English/Spanish is a plus but not required.”

_ Soyk said he spoke to one of the owners of the house at 200 North Fourth St., which has been considered for demolition by city officials. He said the owner has agreed to have the building inspected, with the possibility of making any needed repairs to bring it up to safety standards.

_ The council authorized Stuttgen and Soyk to look for a streetsweeper at cost of no more than $55,000. The city currently budgets $11,500 annually for an outside company to sweep the streets twice a year. Stuttgen said the city’s general fund could borrow the upfront cost of a streetsweeper from the water utility and then pay it back with the money normally allocated for an outside company to do it.

“I’d like to be able to sweep the streets better,” he said.

_ Stuttgen told the council that he’d like to do some smaller street projects in 2022 after multiple years of doing several major projects. A meeting has been set for Nov. 10 to discuss what projects to do. He said the city has applied for grants to pay for projects on Fifth Street and Linden Street; however, he said the city won’t find out if it received the grants until March of next year at the earliest, so the projects won’t happen until 2023.

_ Engineer Dan Borchardt of MSA Professional said his firm has notified the DNR that the city plans on applying for grants to pay for water main replacements on Butternut Street and water and sewer for Cedar Street between Second and Third Avenue. The city is also looking for grants to help pay for a water tower inspection and repairs, drilling additional wells and upgrading the SCADA system used to provide electronic communication throughout the city’s water and sewer systems.

_ Soyk told the council that the city has hired Dylan Bloch, a 2016 graduate of Abbotsford High School, as a water/ wastewater operator. Bloch has a bachelor’s degree in fisheries and aquatic sciences from UW-Stevens Point.

“I think he’s going to be a really good fit,” he said.