Chapter III · Animals and Fowl

ARTICLE 7. BEEKEEPING

Sections 3-701 to 3-702 · 2 sections

3-701 Keeping of bees.

It shall be unlawful for any Person to place, establish, or maintain any Hive, box stand, or Apiary or keep any Bees in or upon any Premises within the City limits unless the Bees are kept in accordance with the provisions of this Section.

(a)Definitions.

Abandoned Hive — includes, but is not limited to, a Colony or Hive and equipment a Beekeeper has ceased to manage, is deserted, not maintained or left unattended.

Apiary a Hive or collection of Hives including the immediate area surrounding the Hive.

Bees — means any stage of the common domestic honey bee, Apis Mellifera species.

Beekeeper is any Person or Persons who Owns, operates, maintains, possesses or otherwise controls a Hive or is the Owner of Property upon which a Hive is situated.

Colony is a single managed Colony or Hive consisting of a queen and all life stages to support sustenance and reproduction kept by a Beekeeper and synonymous with Hive.

Flyover Barrier is a solid wall, fence, or dense vegetation or combination thereof that provides an obstruction through which Bees cannot readily fly.

Hive is where a managed Colony is located. A Hive consists of a managed Bee Colony kept in a structure intentionally provided by the Beekeeper for Bee housing. The Bee housing structure has movable frames to allow the Beekeeper and inspector complete access to the inner living area of the Colony and its contents for manipulations such as re-queening, viewing, evaluation and sampling.

Hive Pests — means any agent or characteristic in a managed Bee Colony or Hive that makes the existence of such Colony or Hive detrimental to the apicultural industry, other neighboring apiaries, the environment, or public safety by being kept in a manner as to contain any unhealthy conditions or be a source of Bee Pests which include but is not limited to disease, parasites, fungi, foulbrood, bacteria, microsporidia, virus, insect, nematode, mites, or other organisms that damage Bees or Bee products.

Neighboring Dwellings — means a place where a Person resides and may include, but is not limited to, the following: any part of an attached home, unattached residential office, unattached garage, mobile home, guest home, condominium or apartment.

Undesirable Bee Behavior is any behavior exhibited by Bees from a Hive that may result in harm to others. Undesirable Bee Behavior includes, but is not limited to, characteristics of Africanized Bees guarding a larger territorial perimeter around the Hive in greater numbers than is typical of European Bees, responding to minimal or no Provocation into over-defensiveness, aggressiveness, repeated swarming, unpredictability, reactiveness, and agitation during, but not limited to, Hive inspection. Bees foraging on flowering vegetation is considered normal and desirable.

(b)Registration and License. Beekeepers shall register the number of Hives and the location of each Hive on the first day of January of each year or 30 calendar days prior to acquiring a Hive. The Beekeeper shall provide written approval from all adjacent residents. After submitting all required information, the City will issue a revocable license to the Beekeeper. No registration fee shall be required.

(c)Approved Hives, Colonies, or apiaries. Beekeepers shall maintain Bees in a Hive intentionally provided by the Beekeepers for Bee housing. The Bee housing structure shall have movable-frames to allow full access to the inner Bee living quarters for viewing, evaluation and sampling of the structure and its contents including by not limited to drones, queens, workers, beeswax, comb, honey, and pollen.

(d)Distance Restrictions. Hives must be located at or greater than the following distances:

(1)25 feet from Neighboring Dwellings.

(2)15 feet from neighboring Property lines.

(3)40 feet from any public road or sidewalk.

(4)40 feet from any public park or school.

(e)Identification Signs. Beekeepers shall identify the Beekeeper’s name and telephone number information on al1 Hives in black letters, not less than one inch high, on a background of contrasting color.

(f)Regular Hive Check. Beekeepers shall inspect each Hive at least once a month to detect Undesirable Bee Behavior or Hive Pests in order to take corrective action in a timely manner. Beekeepers shall practice swarm prevention techniques and provide additional space for Colony growth to minimize Bee swarming.

(g)Water Supply Required. Beekeepers shall maintain an adequate and accessible supply of fresh water available at all times.

(h)Flyover Barrier. Beekeepers must maintain an adequate Flyover Barrier of at least six (6) feet in height to shield any part of a Property line that is within twenty-five (25) feet of a Hive.

(i)Queen Bee. Each Hive shall be re-queened if the Colony exhibits Undesirable Bee Behavior.

(j)Transportation of Bees. No Person shall transport a Colony of Bees between sunrise and sunset or cause Bees to be transported during that time period unless the Bees are transported in a vehicle with screens or other devices that will prevent Bees from escaping from the vehicle.

(k)Undesirable Hives. No Beekeeper shall Own or operate a Hive that exhibits Undesirable Bee Behavior, contains Hive Pests, or is an Abandoned Hive.

(l)Maintenance. Each beekeeper shall ensure that no bee comb or other materials that might encourage robbing are left upon the grounds of the apiary site. Upon their removal from the hive, all such materials shall promptly be disposed of in a sealed container.

(m)Number of Hives. No more than two Hives shall be maintained on any Property.

(n)Revocation of License. The City may revoke a license at any time, or decline to renew a license, due to any failure to comply with the applicable restrictions and limitations. Notice of any intended revocation or non-renewal of a license shall be given in writing to the license holder at the address provided in the application, identifying the reasons therefor, and such revocation or non-renewal shall become effective ten (10) days thereafter unless the license holder has by such time submitted to the City Clerk a written request for a hearing on the matter before the governing body, in which case the revocation or non-renewal shall not be effective unless upheld by the governing body following a hearing thereon. The license holder shall be given not less than fifteen (15) days notice of the date, time and place of any such hearing.

(Ord. 4987-19; Ord. 4998-19; Ord. 5038-21)

3-702 Violations and penalties.

Any Person who shall be convicted of violating any provisions of this Article shall be punished by a fine as hereinafter provided. Each day that a violation of this Article occurs shall constitute a separate offense and shall be punishable hereunder as a separate violation. The fine prescribed above for the first conviction for a violation of a provision of this Article shall be an amount not less than $100 nor more than $200; and for the second conviction for a violation of the same provision shall be an amount not less than $200 nor more than $500; and for the third or any subsequent conviction for a violation of the same provision shall be an amount not less than $500 nor more than $1,000. The fine shall be in addition to any applicable court costs or impoundment fees. For the purposes of this subsection, prior convictions shall include any past conviction of the same offense with a conviction date that is within five (5) years prior to the offense date of the offense prosecuted as a second, third or subsequent offense.

(Ord. 4987-19; Ord. 4998-19; Ord. 5038-21)