Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

We live in the city of lafayette, california. We live in an R-10 zoning area. We have had chickens in our property for the last 2-3 years. The city recieved an anonymous complaint stating that we have chickens in our property (not that it smells, or noisy, but that they are there, and we should not have them). We met with the code enforcement officer, who indicates that because it is not explicit in the municipal code that we can have chickens in our property, we cannot have chickens. He even conceded to the way the law is written, if we had a big enough plot, we could maintain a horse, but not a chicken. So the question is, if a municipal code is not explicit on the use of land (i.e., does not say you can keep chickens), is it illegal to keep chickens?


Asked on 12/05/13, 2:34 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Bryan Whipple Bryan R. R. Whipple, Attorney at Law

The City of Lafayette is aggressively addressing the issue of rural residential property owners who want to have chickens. The result seems to be pro-hen and anti-rooster. There is a Web site with a phone number and the name of an individual in city government to whom poultry-related zoning questions can be addressed. Try this link:

http://ci.lafayette.ca.us/index.aspx?page=412

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Answered on 12/05/13, 7:28 pm


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