A new chapter in home energy may be blowing in the wind for some communities.

Garland is the latest North Texas city considering a zoning ordinance aimed at regulating wind energy devices that generate power for residential use. The measure is on Tuesday's council agenda.

Other cities, including Grand Prairie, Waxahachie and Oak Point, already have such ordinances.

Residential wind energy devices are rare in urban areas and may be too expensive or impractical for many homeowners. But city officials say they want to make sure rules are in place for the day when wind energy devices become more commonplace.

Falling oil prices recently prompted Dallas billionaire T. Boone Pickens to put on hold his plans for a massive wind farm in West Texas that would serve urban areas. But industry representatives say interest in wind power remains high. And that interest is only expected to grow as energy costs increase and more people want to go green to lessen their impact on the environment.

Ron Stimmel, small wind advocate for the American Wind Energy Association, described interest in wind energy as "skyrocketing," with about 10,000 small wind systems sold in the United States last year - about 1,000 of those for home use.

In Garland, where the issue has been debated for about two years, concerns about unsightly towers and safety have caused delays. Some residents fear towers could crash onto their properties during extremely bad weather, even though supporters say the devices are made to withstand the strongest of winds.

"We believe the time is right," Garland Mayor Ronald E. Jones said of the city's ordinance. "We believe we can reach an agreement that protects citizens and addresses the concerns of aesthetics, functionality, minimum intrusion into neighborhoods and above all, safety."

Mr. Stimmel said city zoning is one of the biggest obstacles for wind energy devices because of misconceptions or lack of information.

"City planners often don't know what to do with these devices," Mr. Stimmel said. "They treat them like power plants or large utility turbines, and zoning policies can differ drastically from city to city or even neighborhood to neighborhood."

A small wind energy system generally produces less than 100 kilowatts of electricity and supplements or replaces power from a utility company. It can be used at a residence or a small business.

In Grand Prairie, which passed its ordinance in April 2007, towers of up to 80 feet can be installed only on lots that are at least 2 acres. However, the city's chief planner said the city is exploring the possibility of allowing smaller systems on smaller lots.

In Waxahachie, the city ordinance approved in April limits tower turbines to lots of at least 2 acres and requires setbacks of at least 1.1 times the height of the tower.

The first Waxahachie resident in line to get a permit was Jeff Issokson. He is convinced he made the right choice with his 35-foot wind turbine tower. His most recent electric bill was $95. That compares with $205 for the same month last year.

With systems similar to his priced from $13,000 to $18,000, Mr. Issokson said it would take five to seven years to recover the costs.

But Mr. Issokson and others have noted that tower height is crucial. The higher the turbine, the less the wind is obstructed by other buildings or trees. His tower is in a hilly area on his 7-acre property.

Tower height has been one of the main issues in Garland, where residents such as Lee Lutz say they don't like the idea of rows of towers jutting out from behind neighborhood homes.

"Most of the comments I'm hearing from people in my neighborhood deal with safety," Ms. Lutz said. "We're glad the council is looking at setback issues because that is very important to the issue of how safe these things are."

City Council member Laura Perkins Cox said she initially was opposed to having 40-foot towers anywhere in the city.

"Now I am more concerned that these devices be located in the right places," Ms. Cox said. "This would mean looking at lot size, acreage, topography."

The bottom line for many in Garland, Ms. Cox said, is aesthetics and how towers might affect visual beauty.

Fellow council member Larry Jeffus, a strong supporter of the ordinance, said the measure is intended to provide clear rules for the installation of tower turbines as well as house-mounted systems.

Even supporters have acknowledged that wind turbine towers will be appropriate for only a few homeowners in the city. But Mr. Jeffus said even the smaller house-mounted turbines can provide savings for homeowners.

"We're really interested in providing citizens the flexibility and ability to mitigate their energy costs," Mr. Jeffus said.