The original ordinance proposed one chicken per every 500 square feet with a maximum of 15 chickens per lot. But members of the commission, especially Mayor Brad Dantzler, felt the cap was too high and opted to slash it by more than half, with one chicken per 1,000 square feet up to five chickens. My problem is you have a small lot and you can put 10 chickens in the backyard. It just seems like to me it s too many, Dantzler said at the Feb. 8 meeting. To me, three or four is plenty if you re just trying to put food on the table.
City staff said part of the motivation behind the ordinance was the fact that there are residents in the city who already own chickens. This ordinance will allow code compliance staff to regulate the number of chickens, in addition to ensuring chickens are contained in a backyard and that there s a coop on the property for proper care. There are no roosters allowed.