01-22-2013 Planning Commission Packet

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,4 .r Zoning Code Amendments January 17,2013 Page 2 List of Eghibits Exhibit A. Existing Code Sections Exhibit B. Council Memo and Minutes from 12/10/2012 Meeting , Exhibit C. MN Dept. of Agriculture &UMN Extension Service-Various Documents Exhibit D. City of Medina Code Excerpts Exhibit E. Materials from Brooklyn Park Chickens Review Process Background Chapter 62: Animals of the Orono Municipal Code (not part of the Zoning Code) contains provisions that regulate the keeping of farm animals with regard to housing conditions, containment of animals and trespassing, The provisions of Chapter 78: Zoning Code further regulate animals by establishing zoning districts in which animals are allowed as an accessory or conditional use; minimum acreages required for keeping various animals; and the location of animal housing structures. The zoning code since 1968 has allowed the keeping of domestic animals, including horses, for non-commercial purposes as a conditional use or as an accessory use in various zoning districts. The code at that time placed the following conditions on the keeping of horses: - a minimum of two acres of open pasture must be available for a single horse; - one additional acre (of open pasture) is required for each additional horse; - where horses are kept stabled without requirement of pasture for feed purposes, the minimum pasture requirement may be reduced at the discretion of the Council (emphasis added); and - such minimum pasture acreage shall be exclusive of minimum lot requirements and shall not include low-lying lands. In 1975 the concept of "animal units" was incorporated into the Code, with the definition remaining virtually unchanged since then: 78-1 Definitions: "Animal Unit means, for one animal unit equivalency, one cow or steer; one horse, donkey or burro; three sheep; or 50 fowl." The minimum acreage requirement was also revised in 1975 to state "A minunum of one acre in aggregate, exclusive of one acre for the principal building, must be available for each animal unit, except as hereinafter set forth." The `exception' thereafter set forth was that the requirement for horses remained the same as before - one acre for the principal building,plus two acres of open pasture for the first horse, and one additional acre for each additional horse. This is how the ordinance has been administered since 1975. Key Concepts and Issues While the text language has been restructured slightly since 1975, the basic elements have not changed. There are a few key concepts and that should be reinforced: 1) At least 3 acres are required to have a horse, of which 2 acres must be open pasture. This means that most properties developed in Orono's 2-acre zone in the past 35-40 years cannot have a horse.