MANSFIELD — The average price of a dozen eggs was around 79 cents in 1988 — the year Mansfield City Council banned backyard hens.
Fast-forward nearly four decades and that price has jumped to around $2.28. Even adjusted for inflation, the price for the kitchen staple has increased.
Mansfield residents will again have a chance to generate their own eggs, starting around April 2026.
A divided City Council on Tuesday evening — deciding to waive any additional readings of the bill — voted 4-3 to approve legislation that will allow backyard chicken coops within city limits.
First Ward Councilwoman Laura Burns, 3rd Ward Councilman Rev. El Akuchie, 5th Ward Councilman Aurelio Diaz and 6th Ward Councilwoman Deborah Mount voted in favor of the proposal, which includes requirements residents will have to meet in order to participate.
One of those is a $100 one-time registration fee.
At-large lawmakers Shari Robertson and David Falquette voted against, as did 2nd Ward Councilwoman Cheryl Meier. Those same three council members opposed moving up the final decision, which had been set for a final vote on Dec. 16.
Fourth Ward Councilwoman Cynthia Daley didn’t attend the meeting.
Council opened discussions on the topic at its Nov. 18 meeting, a new law that will allow a maximum of six hens (no roosters) on properties within city limits on one- and two-family lots.
A different version of a similar proposal was rejected in 2017 by an entirely different group of city lawmakers after several meetings with residents.
The unexpected vote — which came after Mount successfully moved to waive additional readings — followed another lengthy list of residents spoke in favor of backyard hens during the public participation portion of the more than three-hour council meeting.
Those speaking again included adults and children, many of them echoing themes expressed in November by other residents.
(Below are photos of residents who spoke during the public participation of portion of Mansfield City Council on Tuesday evening, all of them in support of backyard chicken legislation.)
A citizens’ group called the Friends for Mansfield Backyard Chickens pushed for the change, circulating a petition in favor of the proposal this year that organizer Kelsey Cunning of 993 West Cook Road said generated 561 signatures.
Cunning, who spoke during the November meeting, again addressed council on Tuesday, answering questions and concerns she said she heard since that session.
One of those questions centered on rental properties.
“(Renters) must follow the same rules as homeowners with the added requirement of (written) landlord approval,” she said. “Landlords choose whether to permit any animal and chickens are no exception.
“There’s fear of irresponsible tenants, but with more renting than ever, it’s unfair to discriminate against those who cannot afford to buy a house,” Cunning said.
“As with any decision, pros and cons must be weighed. (But) families should make the decision, not the government, especially when it comes to their health and whether or not they should choose to do it,” she said.
After the public remarks, Meier was the first lawmaker to express concerns, primarily regarding the city’s ability to enforce the backyard hen program under the rules spelled out in the legislation.
That task will fall primarily on the city’s permitting and development department, though the police department could also become involved.
“I absolutely think that this legislation has been well thought out. It’s certainly gone through numerous meetings with the public. I appreciate all of the involvement and the community coming together to come up with ideas that would potentially work,” Meier said.
Meier questioned if the permitting and development department was sufficiently staffed to handle the new program.
“My concerns are the enforcement. I don’t have concerns with the people who are here this evening that want to raise backyard hens. I have the concerns with the people who are gonna go rogue and then our codes and enforcement people are going to have to pick up the pieces,” Meier said.
The 2nd Ward representative said she had posted about the proposal on social media related to her ward and had received more negative feedback than positive.
Under the new law, backyard hens are prohibited on lots containing multi-family dwellings, mixed-use structures or commercial/industrial uses.
People have to provide a site plan showing coop and run location that would meet requirements. They also would have to complete the Ohio State University backyard poultry course or an equivalent program.
An inspection of the property and the proposed coop/run will be required. Coops would have to be elevated at least a foot. Each hen must be provided a minimum of 2½ square feet of interior coop space.
Hens have to be confined to a coop or shelter from dusk to dawn. Each hen has to be provided a minimum of eight square feet of outdoor run space. The runs would have to be fully enclosed with fencing to prevent escape.
In addition, hens would not be able to free-range outside of a coop or a run.
Penalties for any of the provisions of the section could include a $25 fine per day, per violation, until remedied. Anyone who violates any provision would be guilty of a fourth-degree misdemeanor for a first offense and a second-degree misdemeanor for a subsequent violation.
Robertson, a retired Mansfield police captain, echoed Meier’s concerns. She suggested the issue be placed before city voters, rather than decided by council.
“Some of the feedback that I’ve had is that enforcement is huge and we heard that at the last council meeting. I can tell you from coming from an enforcement side in the city, it’s not always fun for the enforcers to have to deal with the people who are rogue, so to speak,” Robertson said.
“As the legislation is written, I have many concerns. I feel if anything, this is something that should be up to the voters,” she said. “That’s my personal opinion based on the feedback and things that I’ve gotten.”
Mount, Diaz and Akuchie all said they supported the proposal, which Burns spoke in favor of during the November meeting.
“There’s been a few people in my ward who don’t want it, but there’s been a lot of people who do, and I think when it’s something like this, we need to approach it from a citywide, approach,” Diaz said.
“I personally feel like … I’m surprised this isn’t already in effect,” he said, applauding the young people who spoke at the last two meetings about the educational and nutritional aspects of the plan.
“I’m very pro-hen at this point for a variety of reasons,” Diaz said. “Nutrition and affordable food is very important (and) impacts so many demographics, particularly those who I work with closely.
“I mean, we have more geese around the city than anything else.
Akuchie, who didn’t attend the November meeting, said those speaking on Tuesday helped him him realize how important the issue was to many residents.
“It makes a whole lot of difference in my mind. I didn’t know that hens are therapeutic. I found out because somebody in my ward saw a hen in somebody’s backyard and called me. It was a doctor’s recommendation and it was a therapeutic chicken,” Akuchie said.
“As I look at the legislation, it was well -crafted and has a lot of detail,” he said. “It brings people together and has a lot of good stuff. If you ask my vote, I would say I’ll vote for the chickens.”
That’s precisely what Mount did when she was able to push the issue to a vote.
“From looking into the history (of the ban), there was nothing ever mentioned in the press. It seems like it was part of a bulk package … that they just approved new legislation and that was a part of it. It doesn’t look like there was anything that happened at the time,” she said.
“It was 1988 when it was banned and before that it was allowed.
“But we’ve heard from a lot of people and I appreciate everybody that’s taking the time to express their views. I think the group has done well with thinking ahead, addressing those concerns.
“But it’s been discussed quite a bit. So, I would like to make a motion that we dispense with further readings and bring it forward for a vote tonight,” Mount said.
(Watch Tuesday evening’s Mansfield City Council meeting. This livestream video begins with the ending of council’s claims committee. The discussion about backyard chickens begins around the 1 hour and 17-minute mark with public comment.)
