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Residents urge council to allow backyard hens in more Woodbury zoning districts
Summary
Two Woodbury residents used the open forum to ask the council to reconsider restrictions on backyard chicken ownership; residents said hens provide educational opportunities, reduce food waste and are allowed in neighboring cities and in rural Woodbury zoning districts.
At the Woodbury City Council open forum on May 28, residents Samantha Wolfe and Nicole Mitchell urged the council to expand rules allowing backyard chickens into additional residential zoning districts.
Samantha Wolfe of 2101 Cameron Drive told the council she supports allowing hens on quarter-acre lots and said she was surprised Woodbury did not already permit chickens in suburban residential areas. Wolfe said her family values the learning opportunity chickens provide for her children and that hens are common in nearby Twin Cities suburbs.
Nicole Mitchell, 3033 Leyland Trail, said residents often conflate backyard hens with roosters and added, “No no place has roosters,” to emphasize that typical urban chicken rules restrict roosters. Mitchell also told the council that surveys in Woodbury showed mixed responses and that education about what backyard hens entail could affect public opinion.
Both speakers noted the council recently changed rules to allow hens in rural zoning districts but asked the city to formally consider allowing hens in the city’s 4-zoning district used by many suburban homeowners.
No formal action was taken; the open forum is a public comment period and the council does not typically respond immediately during the meeting. Staff and council members said community input is welcome and that a formal code change would require staff analysis and a subsequent public process.
