Legalize Backyard Chickens - Aurora

Austin FitzCorbett

Legalizing backyard chickens in the City of Aurora would offer significant benefits by enhancing local food security, supporting environmental sustainability, and fostering community engagement. Doing so would align the city with the majority of other municipalities in the quad county area, making Aurora the second most populous city in Illinois to permit backyard chickens, taking the seat from Naperville.

The following presentation describes the state of backyard chicken legality in the Aurora area through maps and data. If you're ready to help legalize backyard chickens, skip to the last slide or visit  the Facebook page .

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The City of Aurora calls four counties home.

Each of the four counties has established that citizens in residential zones are permitted to raise chickens. However, the Illinois Constitution gives municipalities the power to form their own ordinances. Some cities and villages have elected to modify and pass on that privilege, while others have taken it away.

Click the arrow on the right or swipe to view the following slides. On your phone, click the expand button at the top right to view the map.

In the quad county area, residents in 50 cities and villages can own backyard chickens, while 44 cities and villages have banned chickens in residential areas.

Naperville is the most populous municipality that allows backyard chickens, while Aurora is the most populous that forbids them.

This interactive map displays all municipalities in the quad county area and summarizes their chicken ordinances. Click around to learn more.

No person shall own, keep or harbor within the city any dangerous animal, bees, or farm animal and each day such animal is kept in violation of this section shall constitute a separate offense. ... Every owner or any other person who shall violate any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon a finding of liability, be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) and not more than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) per violation, per day the violation exists.

Aurora Code of Ordinances

The City of Aurora can impose strict penalties on residents who illegally keep chickens. The median maximum penalty for such a violation in the quad county area is only $750, compared to Aurora's maximum penalty of $2,500. Only the Village of Schaumburg has a greater maximum fine than Aurora.

Imagine a different Aurora!

Here's what a chicken-friendly Aurora may look like. Each yellow and orange lot on this map is zoned either one-family or two-family today. The City of Aurora has over 30,000 such lots.

By allowing ownership of "backyard chickens" on one-family and two-family lots, about 100,000 Aurorans (half of the city's population) could gain personal freedom that residents of places like Naperville, Elgin, and Oswego already have.

Use the Search tool at the top left to find an address!

Even if chickens were only allowed on lots of at least 0.18 acre, the minimum size of new one- and two-family lots in the City of Aurora, over 50% of all such lots would be allowed to house chickens.

In total, 600 acres of one- and two-family lots could be home to backyard chickens.

Of the 50 municipalities in the quad county area that allows backyard chickens, the average has ordinances specifying rules like this:

  • No minimum lot size
  • Single-family lots only
  • Maximum of 5 hens (no roosters)
  • No license required to have chickens, but a building permit is required for a coop (21 municipalities require a license at an average cost of $58, most do not require renewal)
  • Chickens are allowed to roam a fenced yard during the daytime
  • Neither raising chicks indoors nor slaughtering chickens are allowed

You can click around on any of the interactive maps above to see specific details about each municipality's backyard chickens ordinances.

What can you do?

In suburban settings where residents often have more space and a greater interest in sustainable living, backyard chickens provide a valuable source of fresh, nutritious eggs, which can contribute to reducing grocery bills and increasing food independence. That is especially crucial in Aurora given that 40% of Kane County households with minor-aged children worry about running out of food before having money to buy more, and 34.5% have reported actually running out of food ( Kane County Health Department, 2022 ).

Additionally, chickens play a vital role in managing food waste, which constitutes the largest portion of all residential trash according to the most recent statewide waste study ( Illinois Commodity/Waste Generation and Characterization Study Update, 2015 ). Their natural composting abilities can reduce the amount of organic waste sent to landfills and provide valuable manure for garden enrichment, thus supporting eco-friendly practices such as reducing the need for chemical fertilizers.

Furthermore, raising chickens can strengthen community bonds as residents share knowledge and resources, participate in local events, and engage in discussions about sustainable living practices. Raising chickens also promotes community engagement by providing educational opportunities for children about sustainable practices and fostering an environment that supports innovation and collaboration among residents.

There are certainly arguments against legalizing backyard chickens, but in the words of one nationally recognized legal scholar, "those justifications are often antiquated and outweighed by more current conceptions of beneficial and harmful uses of land. As views about what actions are appropriate in a residential area change, local governments should revise their ordinances to reflect current conceptions of harm". For a great overview of the pros/cons of backyard chickens and urban agriculture, I recommend that you read Sarah Schindler's Of Backyard Chickens and Front Yard Gardens: The Conflict Between Local Governments and Locavores ( hyperlink ).

Aurora has the opportunity to follow-through on its  Sustainability Plan  by legalizing backyard chickens and in-turn supporting a more self-sufficient, environmentally conscious, and connected community. While one Auroran raising backyard chickens might not make a significant impact on a sustainable future, if many Aurorans, Illinoisians, and Americans all take similar actions, it certainly will.