CHARLES CITY — Charles City residents moved one step closer to being allowed to keep chickens in their backyards after the City Council approved the first reading of a proposed urban chicken ordinance Monday, July 20, 2026.
The council advanced Ordinance No. 1202, which would create a new chapter of the Charles City Code governing the keeping of chickens on qualifying residential properties.
The proposal would allow residents to keep as many as six hens on permitted properties. Roosters would remain prohibited.
Residents would be required to obtain an annual city permit before bringing chickens onto their property. Applicants would also need to complete an Iowa State University backyard poultry course, construct an approved coop and run, and pass a city inspection.
Chicken permits would only be available for properties containing detached, single-family homes in residential zoning districts.
Anyone renting a property would be required to obtain written permission from the property owner before applying for a permit or installing a chicken coop.
Applicants would also be required to notify immediately adjoining property owners. Neighbor approval would not be required, however, and a neighbor’s refusal to sign the notice form would not automatically block an application.
Chickens would have to remain confined within an enclosure or fenced area and be secured inside a henhouse or movable chicken tractor during nighttime hours.
Coops would be restricted to rear yards and would have to remain at least 25 feet from neighboring homes, 10 feet from property lines and 10 feet from other buildings.
The ordinance would require coops and runs to remain clean, dry, sanitary and protected from rodents, wild birds and predators.
Chicken owners would be responsible for preventing odors and noise from becoming noticeable beyond the boundaries of their property.
The proposed rules would prohibit commercial breeding and the sale of chickens or eggs. Slaughtering chickens within the city would also be prohibited.
Chickens could not be kept inside homes, allowed to roam from the permitted property or kept on vacant or unoccupied land.
Violations creating a health hazard or interfering with neighboring property could be declared a nuisance. Other violations could be prosecuted as municipal infractions or simple misdemeanors.
City officials previously researched urban chicken regulations used by other Iowa communities before preparing the Charles City proposal.
The first-reading vote does not place the ordinance into effect. Additional council approval will be required before the new rules become law.