§ 9-44.050. Animal Facilities

This Section provides standards for the design, construction, and maintenance of specialized animal facilities. See also Section 9-44.060 (Animal Keeping).

A.

Animal hospitals. An animal hospital shall be completely enclosed within a soundproofed building.

B.

Equestrian facilities. Commercial equestrian stables and arenas shall comply with the following standards.

1.

Minimum lot area. No commercial equestrian riding/rental stable, boarding stable or show arena shall be allowed on a site of less than three acres.

2.

Access. Each commercial rental/riding or commercial boarding stable or combination thereof including either of the two, shall have direct access to the City's equestrian trail system. A commercial show arena, when not in combination with either a riding/rental stable or boarding stable, shall not be subject to this requirement.

C.

Wildlife Rehabilitation Facilities. Wildlife Rehabilitation Facilities (Wildlife Facilities) are facilities, whose purpose is the care and release back into the natural environment, of injured and orphaned wild animals. Wildlife Facilities shall comply with the following standards.

1.

Wildlife Facilities must be located on Residential properties in the Limited Farm Animal-overlay zone, have a minimum of 20,000 square feet, and have a City-issued Conditional Use Permit.

2.

Wildlife Facilities must have all applicable County, State and Federal permits prior to issuance of a Conditional Use Permit.

3.

The animals that may be treated must be indigenous to the State of California, including game birds, protected nongame birds, resident small game mammals, nongame mammals, furbearing mammals, reptiles and amphibians. The following animals are prohibited at the Wildlife Facility: mountain lions, elk, adult deer (e.g., deer that have lost their fawn spots), wild pigs, antelope, bighorn sheep, bear, big game mammals as defined in California Code of Regulations section 350 of Title 14, or animals that are exotic to the State of California (ferrets, Burmese pythons, African lions, and other animals as defined in California Code of Regulations section 671 of Title 14, and the California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife publication "Manual No. 671 (2/25/92) Importation, Transportation And Possession Of Restricted Species" or subsequent updates).

4.

The maximum number of animals on-site at any one time, must be identified in the Conditional Use Permit.

5.

Except as allowed under paragraph 6 below, once treatment is completed, animals must be either released into the wild, transferred to a permitted facility, or humanely euthanized. Animals may not be released to the surrounding area unless they originated in this area.

6.

Resident wild animals may be kept on site as part of the maximum number of animals on-site at any one time, only if they cannot survive upon release back into the wild and are either related to facility operations or are used for off-site, educational presentations. The applicant must have the applicable County, State and Federal permits.

7.

Wildlife Facilities must be an accessory use to the primary residential use, and the permittee of the City's Conditional Use Permit must be the owner-occupant of the property.

8.

Only Wildlife Facility employees and/or volunteers (maximum of two on-site at one time) are allowed at the Wildlife Facility site. No programs or events related to the Facility may be held on-site.

9.

Wildlife Facilities must provide the following setbacks:

a.

All structures used to house wildlife, must be located behind the residence on the parcel and must maintain side and rear setbacks in compliance with the adopted Simi Valley Municipal Code, unless the site abuts a nonoverlay zoned property.

b.

Setbacks for the wildlife enclosures abutting nonoverlay zoned property must be a minimum of 20 feet when a Limited Farm Animal Overlay zoned property abuts nonoverlay zoned property.

c.

All wildlife enclosures, except for aviaries, including pens, uncovered stables, and similar wildlife containment structures that are not fully enclosed with solid walls, shall provide a minimum distance of 50 feet from any legally existing off-site structure used for human occupancy or habitation, other than the residence of the owner or keeper of the animals.

(Amended during 3-07 supplement as amended by § 1 (Exh. A), Ord. No. 1229, eff. November 13, 2015)