Coppell council asks staff to draft backyard-chicken ordinance; no-rooster rule favored

Councilmember Walker brought the issue of backyard egg-laying hens back to the Coppell City Council on June 24, asking that staff prepare a municipal ordinance permitting hens with city guidance and guardrails. "I wanted to bring it back up and see if y'all would consider an ordinance," Walker said during the council’s work session.

The matter drew sustained discussion across multiple councilmembers about limits, permits and enforcement, with several members saying they generally support allowing hens while banning roosters. Walker cited examples from nearby cities and recommended a restriction on roosters: "I would certainly favor the no rooster clause of the ordinance." Council members discussed numeric limits (Walker proposed four hens on lots under 7,500 square feet and six on larger lots), setback and enclosure standards, and possible use of a Texas A&M urban-livestock handbook as a technical reference.

Councilmembers weighing enforcement and administrative burden pushed for a permitting path. One councilmember argued a registry and permit—similar to the city's dog permit regime—would help track locations and complaints, make inspections possible and support enforcement when neighbors complain. Ramesh and others asked staff to consider nuisance-law tools for neighbors without homeowners associations and to check animal-control capacity.

Staff and council members raised practical clarifications: permits could enable inspections of coop siting and sanitation; enforcement would likely involve animal control for noise and nuisance complaints; homeowners associations would still prevail over city rules when applicable; and standards about visibility, enclosure security and odor control could be included. Councilmembers also noted prior interest in 2020: Walker said earlier outreach included a petition with more than 120 signatures representing different households.

Mayor Wes Mays closed the discussion by recording council direction to staff: "I will tell you I've gotten 4 yeses on this so far. So we'll get staff to come back and present to us at at some point in the future." The council did not adopt any ordinance that night; staff were directed to research other cities’ lessons, permit options, enforcement implications and recommended technical standards and to return with a draft ordinance for formal consideration.

For now, the council’s discussion produced clear policy parameters the draft should address: whether a permit is required, a no-rooster rule, per-lot hen limits tied to lot size or per-square-foot standards (the Texas A&M handbook was mentioned), setbacks and visibility rules, sanitation and inspection protocols, and how animal-control resources would respond to complaints.

Next steps: staff will report back with a proposed ordinance and research on enforcement capacity and standards before any formal vote.