Schererville council denies ordinance to allow backyard chickens on 1‑acre lots after mixed public comment

The Schererville Town Council voted to deny Ordinance 20‑27, a proposed amendment to the town’s animal-control code that would have allowed chickens and ducks on parcels larger than one acre, after an extended public comment period and council debate at its July 9 meeting.

The ordinance as presented would have permitted poultry on one‑acre properties subject to restrictions including no roosters, a requirement that coops and runs remain sanitary, and setback rules that keep a coop and run 60 feet from neighboring living structures (reducible to 40 feet if screened by a minimum six‑foot privacy fence or natural screening). Town manager Jim Gorman summarized the measure during the meeting: "This ordinance will allow chickens and ducks in the area with larger than 1 acre of land with restrictions such as no roosters must remain 60 feet from the neighboring living structures... A coop and run must be provided…