CUYAHOGA FALLS: After several months of debating the benefits of urban beekeeping, Cuyahoga Falls City Council this week approved guidelines that will allow residents to keep their hives while providing some buffer to their neighbors.
There are at least 20 beekeepers in the city, making it the most active beekeeping community in Summit County by some accounts.
But because the law was silent on residential beekeeping, some argued that it was not permitted at all. The issue came to a head this summer when neighbors of one 17th Street beekeeper complained to the city about getting stung, or fear of getting stung.
After some long public meetings and several conversations with local and national bee experts, rules adopted by the council include:
• Residents with “standard” or “suburban” lots can keep up to two hives, with folks living on larger properties allowed up to eight hives depending on the size of their lot. Residents have 36 months to reduce hives in excess of this allowance.
• Hives must be at least 15 feet from any property line, the hives must be kept in the backyard and the hive entrance must face away from the closest property line.
• If the hive is less than 25 feet from all property lines, a solid fence or dense hedge (known as a flyway barrier) will be required near the hive.
• The hive owner must maintain a supply of fresh water closer than any other water source on another property.
While some residents voiced opposition to any beekeeping in residential areas, Council President Mary Ellen Pyke said the city has an obligation to make rules fair to all residents and not to address a single neighborhood conflict.
Most residents and beekeepers who weighed in on the issue one final time Monday thanked the council for tackling the issue and said the rules will make for better neighbors.
Still, some sought to have the council hold off for one final tweak, saying the legislation did not address a critical point: Hives not currently in compliance should wait to be moved until the winter, when the bees are dormant.
Hathaway Drive beekeeper Chris Caston said bees find their way back to the hive using pheromones and that moving a hive more than 3 feet can confuse them and end up killing a hive. In Caston’s case, he will need to move his hive 7 feet to come into compliance with the law, during a season in which his 80,000-plus bees are still active.
Several council members said that because the experts they spoke to never addressed that issue, they didn’t see a need to add anything more to the legislation, which will go into effect next week.
Caston said he will seek a variance for his hive in the hopes of delaying the process long enough for his bees to go into hibernation. Councilman Russ Iona said he hoped the city would use common sense in enforcing the regulations.
Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/paulaschleis.