If you live in the city of Annapolis, chickens could soon be coming to a backyard near you.

When members of the Annapolis City Council meet Monday night, they will get a first look at a piece of legislation that, if approved, would allow "chickens but not roosters to be kept or maintained within the city of Annapolis."

The ordinance was introduced by Mayor Josh Cohen who spoke about it a little last week when he visited students at St. Anne’s School of Annapolis.

The city code currently doesn't allow poultry in the city, according to a staff report compiled by employees from the city's Department of Neighborhood and Environmental Programs (DNEP).

As noted in the section of the code, "No person shall keep or maintain any animal within the city for the purpose of human consumption, except where the animal is maintained for the purpose of consumption as part of a religious observance."

If approved, this bill would change that section of the code by allowing home owners to have up to five chickens on their property. As noted in the report, having chickens in the city would "provide easier access to fresh eggs" and would also "reduce the load going into the trash or the compost pile."

Maria Broadbent, director of DNEP, noted that there has been a movement across the country to allow people to have a small number of chickens in their back yard. As noted in the report, Anne Arundel County Code currently allows for 30 chickens on properties that are 40,000 square feet or larger. Gaithersburg, MD, and Falls Church, VA, also have ordinances allowing for chickens.

There’s even a website, called the BackYardChickens Forum that looks at different laws pertaining to the issue across the country.

Broadbent said the drafted legislation came about after the city received several requests from people wanting to have chickens in their backyards.

“I’ve had probably eight or 10 people contact me, maybe more, that want to have chickens in their yard,” Broadbent said. She said those requests came from different areas of the city, ranging from Prince George Street to Admiral Heights to Eastport.

Broadbent said after receiving the requests, her department took time to research and compare the city’s code to that of other municipalities.

She noted that while the department hasn’t received any opposition to the idea, it’s likely that there will be a lot of discussion about the issue before a vote is taken. A public hearing on the topic will take place at a later date.

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