South Bend chicken ordinance goes into effect at midnight

Soon the day will come when chickens can be raised within the South Bend city limits. In fact, South Bend’s urban chicken ordinance official takes effect at midnight on Friday.

That means on Monday morning, residents can apply for the first time to raise chickens on their property.

According to Gary Libbey of South Bend Animal Control, “We do have a form that they can fill out there need to be some checks the coops have certain building requirements materials they are constructed out of you know they need to be impermeable to pets and rodents, certain setbacks from property lines and adjacent structures.”

The permit application costs $20, and residents are being asked to file their paperwork through the Dept. of Code Enforcement.

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