Chicken saga drags on in Saukville as officials delay

In yet another twist in the Saukville chicken saga, the Village Board last week tabled action on a request to allow a limited number of hens on single-family lots.

The decision, which was based on a Finance Committee recommendation and made at the urging of Village President Andy Hebein, continues the nearly five-month debate over a request filed by Tim Schwister and his mother Barbara Schwister in September to change village ordinances to allow chickens to be kept in the village.

The board voted in October to hold an advisory referendum on the issue in April, but last month officials were told by Village Attorney Brad Hoeft that state law does not allow for such a question to be put on the ballot.

The board then considered conducting a survey of residents, but at an estimated cost of $12,650, the questionnaire was too expensive, officials agreed.

The board delayed further action on the request until last week’s meeting, when at least some trustees thought the board would begin the work of tweaking the Schwisters’ latest request or consider a 2021 proposed chicken ordinance that went through significant revisions before being rejected by the board nearly six years ago.

The problem with the request submitted by the Schwisters last year, Hoeft said, is that it seeks to change village ordinances to allow chickens outside of the zoning code.

“The issue I have with this is that it takes the potential regulation of poultry out of the zoning code, and that’s a concern from an enforcement standpoint,” he said. “We have a lot more authority and options ... through our zoning authority.

“I can’t recommend approval of this.”

At least some trustees, however, seemed open to the idea of revising the Schwisters proposed ordinance to make it more palatable.

“I think everybody was under the assumption that we all agreed this wasn’t going to be approved as is and that there were some things that needed to change,” Trustee Pamela Duckart said. Duckart previously said she and her husband Jesse Duckart, who is also a trustee, favor allowing residents to keep a limited number of hens in the village.

But Hebein said that is not the job of the village to rewrite proposed ordinance changes.

“I don’t feel it’s the responsibility of the board to continue to iterate and continue to draft versions of this,” he said. “We have people come to this board all the time with petitions and we don’t keep writing and editing them, and in this case I feel like that’s what we’re doing.

“I think it sets a precedent that we should be concerned about.”

Pamela and Jesse Duckart then suggested the board consider the chicken ordinance proposed in 2021, noting the village spent considerable time refining that proposal, which was also submitted by the Schwisters.

Hebein, however, said the latest proposed ordinance change, not the one from 2021, is the issue before the board.

Trustee William Rudolph noted pending state legislation could force the village’s hand when it comes to allowing chickens.

“One of the things we need to be aware of is there’s pending legislation in Madison which would prohibit municipalities from banning the keeping of hens and quail,” he said. “It will allow us to have permits regulating the keeping of chickens, but we could not ban it outright.”

Under Assembly Bill 42 and companion legislation in the Senate, municipalities could not prohibit the keeping of as many as four chickens or quail on residential lots.

Municipalities could, however, prohibit roosters and require permits as well as the notification of owners of property adjacent to lots on which fowl is to be kept. It would allow cities and villages to impose “reasonable regulations” regarding the locations of coops on properties as well as cleanliness standards.

The Assembly bill is currently in the House Local Government Committee.

Rudolph suggested the village prepare for the possibility it will be required by law to allow the keeping of chickens and quail by getting to work now on a village ordinance regulating fowl.

“My opinion is, let’s be proactive and start working on this now so if it does pass we are set to do something instead of just tabling it,” he said. “It (tabling the issue) is like shirking our responsibility in some respects.”

But tabling a chicken ordinance, Hebein said, is exactly what the board should do so it doesn’t waste time and money drafting an ordinance before the Legislature votes on a state law.

“If we jump on this now, we’re going to incur legal fees for Brad (Hoeft) to review it,” he said. “Say the state law passes. Then we’re going to have to come back and spend legal fees again amending what was approved.”

Pamela Duckart said tabling the issue will only delay an already prolonged process.

“I just feel like this has been dragged out long enough,” she said.

The Finance Committee, which is made up of all members of the Village Board, voted unanimously to table action on a chicken ordinance until April in the hope the state Legislature will have acted on the proposed fowl law by then. The Village Board then followed suit.

Tim Schwister said in an interview after the meeting that he is frustrated by the board’s reluctance to decide the chicken issue.

“It’s an easy decision to make, but it seems they (board members) are fearful to take action,” he said. “They just don’t want to do it.”