Annandale homeowner can keep his chickens

Annandale homeowner Young Gee Kim can keep his chickens, the Fairfax County Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) ruled Sept. 26. Kim needed a special permit because his property, at 3801 Annandale Road, is smaller than the two-acre minimum required for having chickens by right.

Kim has five pet chickens in a coop on the side of house.

The BZA also didn’t take any action against the height of the fence around Kim’s yard. The fence is two feet higher than the six-foot limit allowed.

The BZA, however, is requiring Kim to relocate the part of the fence that is encroaching on an adjacent property by about one and a-half to two feet. That adjacent lot, at the point where Annandale Road meets Gallows Road, is undeveloped, but was recently purchased and there are plans for a house there. The rest of the fence can stay as is.

No one from the neighborhood spoke at the BZA hearing, and the board members had very few questions.

None of Kim’s neighbor had formally complained to him or the county about the chickens. They were discovered by a county code inspector who had responded to a complaint about the six-foot high fence.

Fairfax County allows the owners of properties bigger than two acres to keep 16 chickens per acre by right. A special permit is required for smaller properties. Roosters aren’t allowed.