Green City Council holds public hearing on proposed backyard-chicken ordinance; vote expected next meeting

Council members on Tuesday opened a public hearing on Ordinance 2025-06a, a proposed amendment to Chapter 157 that would allow backyard hens in the City of Green on smaller lots than current rules permit.

The sponsor, Councilman Justin Spate, summarized the draft ordinance and said the draft reduces the minimum lot size for keeping chickens from 2 acres to 20,000 square feet (0.45 acres). Spate said the proposal would limit ownership to six hens on lots between 20,000 square feet and 1 acre, eight hens on lots between 1 and 2 acres, and require 20-foot setbacks from property lines and a 100-foot separation from adjacent dwellings per Summit County Public Health recommendations. Spate said roosters would be prohibited on parcels under 5 acres, coops must be enclosed and built with quality materials, manure must be stored or composted to avoid nuisance conditions, the zoning division would issue a capped number of permits in year one (100), and permit holders would be subject to annual inspections. "If people are doing this properly, you would never know if your neighbors have chickens except for when they show up on your front porch with a dozen eggs," Spate said.

Supporters stressed food access, education and modest local impact. Christina Gardner, who introduced a petition that helped prompt the ordinance, described backyard chickens as a source of fresh, nutrient-dense food and said her petition drew strong resident interest. "Keeping chickens may not be for everyone, but they can be kept in a way to bring the community together and in a way that is both respectful and neighborly," Gardner said, arguing the draft is conservative and includes permit and education elements to reduce nuisance risk. Other residents and groups, including the Summit County Farm Bureau (represented by Matt Hartong), urged education and phased implementation rather than an immediate, broad change.

Opponents focused on neighborhood impacts, enforcement capacity and homeowners-association (HOA) rules. Kevin Grama, vice president of the Spring Hill HOA, thanked the council for the proposed HOA exclusion but urged maintaining the existing 2-acre minimum citywide, warning that smaller-lot chickens could create noise, smell, predator and property-value concerns and place extra burdens on code inspectors. Robert Charles, speaking as a Meadowood HOA representative, said many HOAs are disbanding and that allowing chickens on small lots could create disputes between neighbors that local officials would have to resolve.

Council members pressed for clarity about enforcement and deed-restriction mechanics. In response, council and administration officials said permits would not be issued in areas with HOA or deed-restriction prohibitions identified on plat maps, enforcement would be complaint-driven, zoning inspectors could cite violations and, when necessary, Summit County Public Health could be involved to determine nuisance conditions; repeat violations could result in municipal-court citations (minor misdemeanor). Council members also asked whether meat-bird production would be allowed; sponsors said the draft focuses on laying hens and that larger or meat-chicken operations would remain subject to the current acreage thresholds.

Several council members signaled they were comfortable continuing with the draft while preserving the HOA exclusion. Councilmember Mrs. Babbitt, a co-sponsor, said she cosponsored the ordinance and favored keeping the HOA language in place for now. Council members emphasized that this public hearing was for discussion and that per council rules they would not vote on the ordinance the same night; they asked staff to redraft clarifications and return with a final version at the next meeting.

Votes at a glance - Resolution 2025-R20 (trade in older mower toward new mower purchase; purchase price $13,604, $4,000 trade-in): adopted after motions to bypass committee deliberation and the three-reading rule (vote recorded 6–0). - Resolution 2025-R16 (award contract to Oglesby Construction Inc. for 2025 pavement markings; base bid $153,339.35; alternate $8,278.05; total including contingency $177,779.14): adopted (vote recorded 6–0). - Resolution 2025-R15 (request ODOT review speed limit on SR 241 between Jacklyn Drive and Greenbrook Road): adopted (vote recorded 6–0). - Resolution 2025-R17 (NOPEC energized community grant acceptance): adopted (vote recorded 6–0). - Mayoral appointment of Shelley A. Goodrich as finance director: confirmed by council (roll call yes votes recorded).

What happens next Council closed the public hearing and asked staff and sponsors to refine language—particularly around HOA/deed-restriction mechanics, manure/disposal language, and enforcement details—and to return with a final draft for a vote at a future meeting. The council emphasized education and a phased permitting approach as tools to manage potential issues.

Reporting note: Quotes and attributions in this article are drawn from the public hearing and related council discussion on May 13, 2025. The council did not vote on Ord. 2025-06a at this meeting and the ordinance remains under consideration.