Waukegan, IL Animal Ordinances: Veterinary Clinic Zoning (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- UDO Sec. 9.02.B.3, Animal Boarding or Shelter
- Outdoor privacy fence
- Minimum 6 feet high
- Outdoor boarding location
- Interior side and/or rear yard only
- Adjacency rule
- No unenclosed facility next to residential use
- Drainage rule
- Runoff may not reach neighbors, ROW, or storm drains
- Animal hospital/vet clinic
- Classed as Professional Office, no added standards
Summary
Waukegan zones animal boarding facilities and shelters, including the boarding side of veterinary operations, as a conditional use limited to specific business and industrial districts, requiring six-foot privacy fencing for outdoor runs and a ban on siting an unenclosed facility next to residential property.
3.Animal Boarding or Shelter.a.Location. Animal boarding facilities and shelters that are not entirely enclosed are not allowed directly adjacent to any residential use.b.Outdoor Boarding. Outdoor animal boarding facilities may only be located in the interior side and/or rear yard and must be enclosed with a privacy fence with a minimum height of six feet. See Section 9.03.C.17 (Fence or Wall) for additional fence standards.c.Drainage. Drainage from outdoor dog runs or kennels may not drain onto adjacent properties, into the public right-of-way, or into stormwater catchments.d.Safety. All animal boarding facilities and shelters must be designed to ensure the safety, health, and well-being of the animals on-site, including protection from predators, the elements, and inclement weather.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 113).
Full Breakdown
02-1 lists Animal Boarding or Shelter as an allowed use only with a conditional use permit in the B3 District and as a permitted use in B4, plus conditional use in the R/LI District; it is not allowed in any residential, other business, or Lakefront district. UDO Sec. 3 then layers four specific standards onto that use. First, location: a facility that is not entirely enclosed cannot be sited directly adjacent to any residential use, protecting nearby homes from noise and odor. Second, outdoor boarding is confined to the interior side and/or rear yard and must be enclosed by a privacy fence at least six feet high, cross-referencing the general fence standards in Sec.
17. B. Fourth, a catch-all safety standard requires every animal boarding facility and shelter to be designed to protect the health, safety and well-being of animals on-site, including protection from predators, weather, and the elements. 02-1's Professional Office use category separately covers animal hospitals as an office use permitted in most business districts without added standards, a stand-alone veterinary clinic without boarding kennels is regulated as a Professional Office, while any outdoor boarding or shelter component triggers the Sec. 3 standards described above.
Violations & Fines
Operating an animal boarding facility or shelter outside the districts where Table 9.02-1 allows it, or without meeting the location, fencing, drainage, and safety standards of Sec. 9.02.B.3, is a zoning violation subject to enforcement by the Building Commissioner and Zoning Administrator; a facility built without the required conditional use permit in the B3 or R/LI Districts cannot legally operate, and Section 4.08.D allows revocation of a conditional use permit already granted where the standards are violated after approval.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can an animal boarding facility or shelter operate in Waukegan?
What fencing does outdoor animal boarding require?
How is a stand-alone veterinary clinic zoned in Waukegan?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Waukegan
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