O’Hara resident Nadya Ustinova has never raised chickens, but she hopes to soon have a feathered flock in her backyard if a proposed chicken ordinance is passed in the coming months.

Ustinova, a township resident for five years, has attended several virtual township meetings in support of backyard chickens and would like to keep chickens as pets for her two young boys.

“They can see them, raise them, get eggs, and we have a vegetable garden and could use chicken manure. And we have tons of deer around here, and chickens eat ticks and are natural pest control for ticks,” Ustinova said.

Council continues to mull over the details of a second draft of a proposed chicken ordinance.

Courtesy of Nadya Ustinova O’Hara resident Nadya Ustinova poses with her sons, Andreas (left) and Victor Sailer. The family plans to keep backyard chickens if a proposed chicken ordinance is passed by O’Hara Council.  

The draft ordinance would establish a permitting process and regulations for coops and other proposed regulations. It’s a work in progress after more than a year of discussions among council members.

Chickens have never been permitted on township residences under 5 acres.

Allowing the birds on smaller parcels has been discussed for years, but previous attempts by residents to get approval from O’Hara Council failed.

The planning commission forwarded the chicken proposal to council in November.

At that time, O’Hara Manager Julie Jakubec said the goal was to have “something on the books” by March.

Council is expected to discuss the proposal at its next workshop meeting March 7.

“Council is working on their process. They’re currently reviewing, discussing and making desired revisions to the draft ordinance,” Jakubec said recently.

Councilman Mike Hammill said the chicken ordinance is “getting close” and is being fine-tuned.

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“I am 100% for it because I know not a whole bunch of people will go out and get chickens. We are one of the few communities that don’t allow it,” Hammill said.

Councilman George Stewart declined to comment whether he is for or against the proposal but said talks have resulted in “considerable progress.”

“We’re looking forward to getting another read, with changes, and our biggest concern is we want to hear from both sides of the coin. If the ordinance does pass, we want it worded in such a way so people that don’t want chickens won’t be offended,” Stewart said.

Over the past year, council has received input from dozens of residents who attended several township meetings. Stewart said opinions have been overwhelmingly positive, though one male resident during a Zoom virtual council meeting objected to allowing chickens.

“The township and council recognize it’s something the residents are interested in,” Stewart said.

Neighboring municipalities, such as Fox Chapel and Indiana Township, allow backyard chickens.

“I’m excited that council started to look into this and are open to introducing this ordinance in the first place,” Ustinova said.

The township has 9,200 residents and more than 3,600 single-family properties.

If approved, residents would be required to keep chickens in a rear yard. No roosters would be allowed.

The current proposal would require obtaining a permit, maintaining a coop setback of at least 15 feet from any property line and three chickens would be allowed for the first 10,000 square feet of the lot.

A previous draft would have required a setback of 10 feet.

Hammill noted the setback could be the deciding issue.

“I was fine with the 10 feet setback, but I do want to hear everyone’s concerns,” Hammill said.

Each additional chicken would require 2,000 additional square feet of the lot, and no more than 20 chickens per residence would be permitted.

No selling of chickens or eggs would be permitted, and coops cannot be more than 15 feet high.

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