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MEMORANDUM To:Mayor Webster and St. Anthony Village City Council From:Stephen Grittman, City Planner Date:City Council Meeting – June 11, 2024 GC Project No.140.00 Request:Beekeeping – Zoning Ordinance Amendments Property Address: NA Property PID:NA PROJECT DESCRIPTION The proposed Ordinance amendment has been generated by the Parks and Environmental Commission (PEC) to allow beekeeping in St. Anthony. If adopted, beekeeping would be allowed upon approval of the City Council as a waiver from what is currently a prohibition on “farm animals”. The approval would be subject to a set of regulations that are designed to ensure that applicants are thoroughly trained to responsibly keep and maintain bees on their residential property. The existing City Code provisions relevant to “farm animals” prohibit them in the City, with the allowance that the City Council may approve specific requests, waiving the usual prohibition. This waiver has been primarily utilized for chickens in the past. There are no specific requirements for the keeping of chickens, however, staff and the Council routinely add requirements to ensure that chicken facilities are installed and managed to minimize neighborhood concerns. For bees, the waiver process would still exist, however, extensive requirements for bees are proposed. Beekeeping operations can be difficult for potential beekeepers to successfully and safely implement in residential environments, and the requirements in the attached ordinance are intended to address those issues. CITY COUNCIL ACTION Staff asks that the City Council consider this first reading of a proposed ordinance to allow beekeeping in the City’s residential areas, subject to the regulations and standards included in the attached draft language. If approved, a formal ordinance amendment will be prepared for subsequent readings in anticipation of final adoption. 15