The Hobart City Council didn’t chicken out when it came to discussing an ordinance changing the rules on keeping chickens.

The council, following its regular meeting Wednesday, adjourned briefly then the ordinance committee readjourned to discuss several ordinances including one on chickens.

No decision was made but the discussion lasted close to an hour with at least four residents, all of whom said they raise or raised chickens, watching closely.

Hobart resident Elizabeth Cook, who had previously raised chickens, remains hopeful that the changes discussed would allow her to have chickens back on her less than one-acre property.

“Two years ago I received a call from code enforcement telling me that they (the chickens) weren’t allowed,” Cook said.

She said her young daughters and even her neighbors loved their chickens which were kept in a chicken coop now used as a greenhouse.

“They’re not just chickens. They’re pets,” she said.

Chickens are allowed in Hobart at present but the requirement is that the chicken coop be within 200 feet from a residential structure.

“That’s a challenge in Hobart,” Mayor Josh Huddlestun said, adding, “We’re trying to lighten that. The council is looking to make some accommodations to make it less restrictive.”

City Councilman Mark Kara, D-2nd, said he researched the rules and regulations of keeping chickens in other communities, including both Chesterton and Valparaiso.

He’s convinced, after researching other communities and calls received from constituents, that chickens should be allowed with some restrictions.

Kara said he’s in favor of a maximum of four chickens, on smaller lots, with no rooster, and an enclosed chicken coop with no free run.

“The only complaint I’ve had is people wanting to have them,” Kara said.

Discussion also included whether chickens should be allowed on smaller properties such as patio homes.

Huddlestun said those properties would probably be covered under their Home Owners Association (HOA) rules and regulations.

Although they didn’t speak before the committee, several women came to the meeting in support of raising chickens and hoping to learn more about the issue.

Jessica Solomon said she’s raised chickens for four years and it’s been a part of the homeschooling instruction for her children as well as a food source given the fresh eggs.

She said she personally knows of a lot of families in Hobart who raise chickens and enjoy the benefits.

“There’s a bunch of us,” Solomon said.

Deborah Laverty is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.