Keeping poultry in Grover Beach could soon become a reality again.
The City Council is gearing up for a discussion on Oct. 26 to loosen the ban on housing domesticated birds like chickens, turkeys, and ducks on residential and commercial properties.
Until then, locals with poultry can rest easy.
At the Sept. 14 City Council meeting, councilmembers approved a temporary hold on enforcing code violations where people are keeping such birds within city limits.
“We’re pro chickens,” Mayor Kassi Dee said with a laugh at a previous City Council meeting when a pair of residents first floated the proposal.
Grover Beach has prohibited residents from keeping poultry since the City Council adopted that rule in 2024 in a bid to make its animal regulations more consistent with San Luis Obispo County’s.
Residents Michael and Stephanie Lacalle requested a change at the Aug. 24 City Council meeting.
“I’m advocating for a sensible modern ordinance that protects our neighborhoods,” Stephanie told council members. “A balanced policy would strictly prohibit roosters to prevent noise, limit the flock size, and mandate strict setback rules so coops are kept clean and away from property lines.”
Her husband, Michael, added that raising chickens boosts his family’s physical and emotional well-being.
“My wife, what she didn’t share, is that she recently found she has some food allergies. One of those things on her list was eggs and she would get headaches,” he said. “Her friends who had coops would give us eggs, and the headaches were gone.”
Michael told the City Council that observing his friends’ chickens inspired his own family to raise some in their backyard, resulting in his kids becoming attached to the birds.
“We’re seeing our kids develop a sense of responsibility and a sense of connection,” he said. “We would love to see that change in this city. We found out too that Grover is actually currently the only city in SLO County that doesn’t allow it.”
City Manager Matthew Bronson told New Times that common concerns about noise, odor, flies, and rodents influenced the City Council’s 2024 decision to ban keeping poultry.
“We cannot comment on policies in other cities, though Grover Beach is more compact with smaller lot sizes than other cities and rural communities and thus keeping chickens can be more challenging with potentially more nuisance violations,” he said.
Grover Beach has three open code compliance cases regarding keeping of hens at separate residential properties. There have been 12 such cases since the ban on keeping poultry went into effect.
Bronson said that the city’s general approach is to seek voluntary compliance.
The city first issues a courtesy letter to the responsible person alerting them about the complaint and the ban. The letter recommends getting in touch with code compliance to remove the poultry.
A notice of violation is issued if the birds aren’t removed within the agreed upon timeframe. The city will issue an administrative citation if the violation persists.
Bronson added that the city hasn’t heard from residents other than the Lacalles about the proposal to tweak the prohibition. The enforcement freeze will continue until the City Council adopts a new ordinance.
“The enforcement stay as approved by the council applies to all poultry,” he said. “However, that does not mean a property may keep or harbor any animal that would otherwise be subject to any nuisance abatement.” ∆
This article appears in Sept 17-24, 2026.
