A new addition may soon be arriving in Moab’s backyards – chickens.

Proposed ordinance 2009-01 would allow the feathered creatures for purposes of egg laying at residences in the town. A public hearing regarding the matter will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12 in the Moab City Council Chambers, 217 E. Center St.

If recommended by the Moab City Planning Commission, and approved by the Moab City Council, the ordinance could take effect some time in March.

The purpose of the upcoming meeting is to get public input about the proposal, but city planner Jeff Reinhart said he has a hunch which way most people’s opinions will swing.

“I would imagine that the majority of people will be in favor of it because it has been an issue that has affected a broad area of Moab,” Reinhart said.

The proposal came about directly from the actions of two local residents, Sue Phillips and Jennifer Sadoff, who submitted a sample draft to the city in which they cited similar ordinances in Albuquerque, N.M. and Chicago, among other places. Reinhart said he recently spent time researching the issue in order to flesh out the proposal and add specific guidelines.

It was fun, he said, to visit chicken blogs and websites such as backyardchickens.com. He said he even came across photos of chicken coops that looked like “little mansions at the back of the houses.”

The draft ordinance currently under consideration would allow up to four chickens – hens only, roosters would not be permitted – per residence in residential zones, without requiring a permit. Single-family dwellings in commercial zones would also be allowed to have hens. Area residents who wish to have more chickens could apply for a permit for up to 10 chickens. The permit would require an inspection by the city and a small fee.

According to the proposed ordinance, each laying hen must be allotted at least four square feet of space in the coop, while the chickens’ outside area would have to be at least 10 square feet. The ordinance requires that the chickens’ yard and living quarters must be set back at least 15 feet from other residences and, as Reinhart stressed, the fowl would have to be contained and couldn’t wander into neighboring yards. As the ordinance is meant to just encourage personal use of the eggs, selling eggs would be prohibited.

As Reinhart sees it, introducing backyard chickens to Moab could, in a minor way, kill two birds with one stone. By localizing food production, he said, he imagines people would be able to both save money and help create a more sustainable Moab. While, he explained, this measure in and of itself might not have significant environmental impact on the town, it would be a step in the right direction.

It’s “a little piece of the big puzzle,” Reinhart said.