City staff outlines options to restrict roosters, create chicken permits; committee asks for animal-control briefing

City legal staff presented possible ordinance language on Aug. 21, 2025, that would restrict roosters and could limit the number of chickens citywide while creating a chicken-permit process. Brandy Roy Bachman, senior city attorney, said the draft includes options ranging from a rooster ban to a permit that would cover chicken ownership generally.

On enforcement, Roy Bachman said that when an ordinance is adopted staff could phase in enforcement with education first: “in the beginning, their their main focus is gonna be on education,” she said, adding that the city could include a delayed implementation period in the ordinance so owners have time to comply. The memorandum also noted that animal-control processes for seized animals and timetable for reclaiming animals would follow existing animal-at-large procedures.

Council reaction: Some members said their primary concern was roosters rather than small-scale chicken ownership. One council member asked whether the city would grandfather existing chicken owners; Roy Bachman said staff understood the concern and that an implementation period and educational outreach could be specified in the ordinance. Animal-control staff, Roy Bachman said, had indicated support for having a numerical limit but recommended the committee hear directly from animal control to choose an appropriate number.

Next steps: The committee requested a presentation from animal-control staff about complaint volumes, enforcement capacity and recommended numeric limits before the committee adopts specific ordinance language.

Ending: Staff will schedule animal-control to report to the committee and will present revised draft ordinance language after that briefing.