No Chickens Allowed in Lake in the Hills

As is the case for most of McHenry County, backyard chickens will not be allowed in Lake in the Hills. 

During a Lake in the Hills Board of Trustees meeting Thursday, a request by residents Bill and Barb Rasmussen to keep their five hens was not brought to a vote. The Rasmussens are tenants of a village-owned home at 1111 Pyott Road. 

Trustee Stephen Harlfinger made a motion Thursday to discuss the issue of backyard chickens but no other trustee moved to second the motion, halting any further discussion on the matter.

The Rasmussens were not present at Thursday’s meeting. Currently, chickens are not permitted under LITH village code. 

Issue First Discussed at Tuesday Committee of Whole Meeting

During Lake in the Hills Committee of a Whole meeting on Tuesday, the Rasmussens told village leaders they would comply with whatever decision was reached. The husband and wife brought the hens with them in August when they moved from Barrington Hills to Lake in the Hills.

“We keep them for the farm fresh eggs,” Bill Rasmussen told trustees at the Tuesday meeting. “We were just not aware that (the hens) were not permitted in the village.”

The Rasmussens had offered to donate half of their eggs collected each month to the Algonquin-LITH Food Pantry, which will soon move to its new location on the same property.

Several village leaders, including Village President Ed Plaza, expressed concern that granting permission to the Rasmussens could open the door to similar requests by other LTTH residents. The decision was particularly difficult since the village owns the land, he said.

“Allowing this on village-owned property would pretty much negate us from turning down other requests,” Plaza told the Rasmussens on Tuesday.

The home rented by the Rasmussens is zoned institutional building district.

Backyard Chickens Cause Stir in Suburbs

The practice of rearing chickens in backyard coops has been the topic of much discussion in recent months in surrounding communities.

Many people want to keep hens to produce their own eggs for health and financial reasons.

• recently voted against allowing backyard chickens, according to Crystal Lake Patch.
• At the Tuesday night meeting, LITH staff presented a case in Arlington Heights where village officials voted against the practice. 
• Last year, the city of allowing residents to have their own hens, according to Batavia Patch. 
• requested the village allow them to keep backyard hens. An amendment to the village's zoning code must be reviewed and likely would not come before Palatine's village board for a couple months, according to Palatine Patch.