The fate of lawn furniture is up for debate again, since the Ames City Council is revisiting the possibility of writing a couch ordinance that would prohibit residents from placing indoor furniture outside.

Mayor Ted Tedesco vetoed an earlier version of the couch ordinance this past summer, which would not allow couches outside in yards or on porches in rental properties. The mayor has said he would sign a revised version with lower fines that applied to all properties.

The new citywide ordinance will include more than just couches, said John Klaus, city attorney.

“It will apply to owners, occupants and rental property,” he said. “[The ordinance] will apply not only to couches, but to other items not designed for the outdoors.”

Couches will be permitted, though, if they are placed in enclosed porches.

Jim Cornwell, owner of First Property Management, said the ordinance would not affect his tenants, because the rental company already does not allow couches outdoors. This is stated within the companies leases and is enforced, he said.

“As long as [the ordinance] applies to everybody, it needs to apply to single-family residences, not just students,” Cornwell said. “We all need to realize if it wasn’t for students, most of us wouldn’t be here.”

Cornwell said the couch ordinance will be useful if applied to all Ames residents.

“There will always be good tenants, bad tenants, good landlords, bad landlords, good single-family residences and bad single-family residences. We need to get together and make the ordinance apply to everybody,” he said.

Charlotte Hippen, senior in engineering science and Ames homeowner, said the ordinance would not affect her neighborhood because they don’t have couches on their porches or lawns there.

“I’m sure someone will be upset about having to remove them, but it shouldn’t really affect them past that,” she said. “They can either do without or get outdoor-designed furniture.”

Jerone Jones, junior in mechanical engineering, believes the ordinance will take away from the atmosphere of Ames.

“In my opinion, abnormal furniture pieces and couches on the lawn and porches of college-town homes are an unwritten tradition, almost as classic as fraternity parties and tailgating at the crack of dawn,” he said.

— The Associated Press contributed to this story.