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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPacket for RES 07-07-20 City of Carmel ONE CIVIC SQUARE CARMEL, INDIANA 46032 317/571-2417 CARMEL PLAN COMMISSION -MEMORANDUM- Date: June 26, 2020 To: Residential Committee From: Adrienne Keeling Re: Docket No. PZ-2020-00068 Enclosed is the information packet for the following item. If you have any questions, please call 571-2417. Docket No. PZ-2020-00068 OA: Beekeeping Standards Ordinance Amendment. The applicant seeks to amend the Unified Development Ordinance in order to establish standards and definitions for Beekeeping in residential districts. Filed by the Department of Community Services on behalf of the Carmel Plan Commission. Proposed Amendment Summary: Attached is a proposed UDO Amendment which establishes beekeeping standards as an accessory use in residential zoning districts. The Department has seen an increase in beekeeping questions and activity over recent years with no specific standards to manage the size or location of hives. Adopted standards will provide needed guidance to beekeepers, their neighbors, and city staff. Proposed Revisions: Please see the attached revisions to the proposed Beekeeping standards. For simplified review, we’ve removed the standards from the full ordinance format, and the edits reflect the revisions made since the public hearing. The revisions were made in response to questions received at the public hearing as well as input received in the days following. The revisions are summarized as follows: • General: Replaced “should” and “recommended” with “shall.” • General: Replaced the term “property” with the defined term “Lot.” • Inserted language to differentiate beekeeping for personal and agricultural use with reference to the applicable Indiana Code. • Adjusted the number of hives based on lot size. • Added a maximum height 5’ limit on hives located on the ground, and a minimum 10’ height for those on rooves. • Rearranged and revised setbacks, allowing for hives in front of a home if more than 300’ if the house if further back. Also clarified that hives on rooves may follow the setback of that structure. • Added a requirement that fresh water supply is provided. • Clarified what could be construed as aggressive or defensive behavior, and the ways to mitigate it. • Added specificity to when and how and sign should be displayed to identify live bees. 5.02 AB-01: Residential Accessory Building and Use Standards UDO Page 5-4 1 This Accessory Building and Use Standards (AB) section applies to the following zoning districts: 2 ICON: S1, S2, R1, R2, R3, R4, R5 3 C. Accessory Uses: 4 9. Beekeeping: The intent of this Section 5.02(C)(9): Beekeeping Section is to regulate 5 beekeeping in accordance with state law. However, where beekeeping constitutes an 6 agricultural nonconforming use under IC 36-7-4-616, that use may be continued so long as it 7 is maintained and operated in compliance with all (I) state environmental and state health 8 laws and rules, including IC 14-24-8 pertaining to the annual registration of bees, and (II) 9 any requirements to which conforming agricultural use land is subject under the Zoning 10 Ordinance of Hamilton County, Indiana, as in effect as of July 1, 2020. Beekeeping for 11 purposes of personal use and not for agricultural use shall be permitted on property in the 12 City that the person owns, rents, or leases, subject to the following regulationsBeekeeping for 13 purposes of personal use and not for agricultural use shall comply with the following 14 standards: 15 a. The maximum number of hives permitted per property lot area shall be as follows: 16 i. One (1) hive for a propertylot up to 4,350 square feet. 17 ii. Two (2) hives for properties lots that are up to greater than 4,350 up to 6,00010,500 18 square feet. 19 iii. Four (4) hives for properties lots greater than 6,00010,500 up to 16,00021,000 square 20 feet. 21 iiiv. Six (6) hives for properties lots greater than 16,00021,000 up to square feet. 22 ivv. Eight (8) hives for properties lots greater than 43,560 25,000 square feet. 23 b. No bee Bee colony colonies shall be kept in a movable-frame hives that do not exceeds 24 12 cubic feet. 25 c. Bee hives may only be located on the ground or on the roof of any a building with a 26 permanent foundation. When located on the ground, hives shall not exceed five (5) feet in 27 height. When located on a roof, hives shall be placed a minimum of ten (10) feet from the 28 ground. 29 d. Minimum Setbacks: 30 i. Front: No Hives hives may be located on the ground may not be located in the front 31 yard.forward of the Front Line of the Principal Building, or within 300’ of a front lot 32 line, whichever is less. 33 ii. Side: Hives located on the ground shall be located a minimum of 15 feet from a side 34 lot line. The setback of hives placed on a roof shall follow the setbacks for the 35 structure on which the hives are located. 36 iii. Rear: Hives located on the ground shall be located a minimum of 20 feet from a rear 37 lot line. The setback of hives placed on a roof shall follow the setbacks for the 38 structure on which the hives are located. 39 e. Hives must be setback a minimum of 15 feet from any side property line and 20 from 40 rear property line. 41 e. Beekeepers shall maintain an adequate supply of fresh water located near each hive. 42 f. For anyWhenever a colony exhibiting exhibits overly defensive or aggressive behavior, 43 such as stinging or attacking without provocation, the beekeeper shall split the hive to 44 keep it from swarming should or take other immediate mitigating action(s). This may 45 require a beekeeper to split a hive to keep it from swarming. This A split may be kept 46 temporarily with one (1) additional hive, for allowing a new queen, in case the parent 47 hive fails to make a new queen or in case the parent hive fails during colder weather 48 temperatures. 49 g. It is highly recommended that at At least one (1) swarm trap shall be provided where bees 50 are kept. 51 h. If the hives are clearly seen from sidewalks, pathways or adjacent neighbors, it is highly 52 recommended thatvisible from homes on adjacent lots, a six (6)-foot tall barrier (such as 53 a fence or landscaping hedge) shall be installed. Fences shall comply with Section 5.09: 54 Fence and Wall Standards. 55 i. If the hives cannot be concealed from sight or easy access from public places, it is highly 56 recommended that each hive must have a sticker placed on them it or sign no greater than 57 one (1) square foot located near the property line installed indicating that there are live 58 bees inside themthe hive. 59 60 61